Dysphagia in a public School Setting: Making it Work is organized by HomeCEU. This Course has been approved for a maximum of 6 Contact Hours.
Course Description:
Children with dysphagia are present in public school programs with increasing frequency but very few public school clinicians feel competent to manage their very complicated sets of needs. Dysphagia in public school children is a high risk but low frequency phenomenon and as such requires special competencies and attention. This course will provide public school therapists and nurses with the knowledge and skills they need to develop effective programs to facilitate the safety of children with dysphagia, enhance feeding and swallowing skills, assign responsibilities to various members of the school team, and address both legal and ethical questions. Special education law as it relates to children with dysphagia will be reviewed. Specific strategies for assessment and treatment will be provided and ethical considerations in treating this very specialized population will be discussed. Clinicians will be provided with the information and tools they need to develop appropriate plans for the children with feeding and swallowing concerns in their schools.
Course Goals:
This course is intended to instruct the professional on the knowledge and skills they need to develop effective programs to facilitate the safety of children with dysphagia, enhance feeding and swallowing skills, assign responsibilities to various members of the school team, and address both legal and ethical questions.
Course Objectives:
• Identify aspects of Special Education Law pertaining to dysphagia management in public school settings.
• Identify three mechanisms of pulmonary clearance of aspirated material
• Identify three potential consequences of malnutrition and dehydration in children with dysphagia
• Recognize implications of medication administration in children with dysphagia
• Describe and differentiate oral, pharyngeal and esophageal phases of swallowing
• Identify strategies for assessment of oral motor and feeding skills in children with dysphagia
• Identify the rationale for use of instrumental assessment
• State three consequences of thickening liquids in children with dysphagia
• Identify three options for reinforcement utilization in behavioral interventions
• Identify roles and responsibilities for members of the management team for children with dysphagia
• Identify two strategies for limiting liability in management of dysphagic children in a public school setting