Lynch, Y. & Smith, M. When you have lemons make lemonade – an exploration of the challenges and opportunities inherent in carrying out research in a clinical setting. Paper presented at the 2008 Clinical AAC Research Conference, Charlottesville, VA. When you have Lemons make Lemonade – an Exploration of the Challenges and Opportunities Inherent in Carrying out Research in a Clinical Setting. Yvonne Lynch 1 and Martine Smith 2 1 Central Remedial Clinic; 2 Trinity College Dublin Abstract: The need for more research in AAC is well documented. However the challenge of encouraging clinicians to engage in research remains. This paper outlines a study exploring classroom based service delivery in a school for children with physical disabilities. Three Speech and Language Therapist and six SLT students across three classes implemented the program with teachers and assistants. Teachers and students completed pre/post questionnaires exploring knowledge, skills and attitudes to AAC. Therapy outcomes for each child were analyzed. The project yielded interesting results. Perhaps more interesting was the impact of the study on service delivery and embedding research into clinical setting. Research Description The researcher’s rallying cry of ‘We need to do more research’ rings out at every AAC conference however it inevitably results in the clinician’s rebuttal of ‘I don’t have the time’. This conundrum of how to carry out high quality research while meeting clinical needs continues to face the AAC community. It is a puzzle we must address is essential to high quality practice. In the clinical setting there are many competing priorities. The Speech and Language Therapy Manager juggles clinical, administrative and human resource management demands in order to maintain a balanced scorecard of key performance indicators. Fitting in research can seem like an impossible task. This paper explores some of the challenges and opportunities encountered in carrying out research in a clinical setting in Ireland. A study looking at classroom based service delivery provided opportunities to meet client need in an effective way. In conducting the study, some unexpected challenges arose along the way, as did some unexpected outcomes. Carrying out this project and others like it has shaped our thinking, practice and goals for the future.