Dysphagia Research Bites

If you've ever felt like your dysphagia training just doesn't quite fit when you're sitting at someone's kitchen table, you're not wrong, and this episode is going to explain exactly why. In this solo episode of Dysphagia Research Bites, Chantelle shares the framework at the heart of her clinical practice and the reason she started this podcast and her business: Dysphagia manag...

What does it actually look like to assess swallowing difficulties in an adult who has eaten a certain way their entire life, and whose "textbook" may look nothing like yours? In this episode of Dysphagia Research Bites, Chantelle sits down with Jen Biener, a speech-language pathologist specialising in adults with developmental disabilities, to dig into a Dutch retrospective study on the...

If there's one thing that hasn't aged well in dysphagia management, it's the idea that swallowing is only a reflex. Over the past few decades, our understanding of cortical control in swallowing has fundamentally shifted, and so have our approaches to rehabilitation. In this episode, Professor Maggie-Lee Huckabee walks us through that evolution: from reflex-based compensation, to muscl...

If you're a speech pathologist working in the community, particularly in Australia or with adults with developmental disabilities, this episode is for you. But if you work with risk feeding plans in any setting, including the UK, there's plenty here that will resonate too. In this episode of Dysphagia Research Bites, Chantelle hosts a panel discussion with speech pathologists: Meredith Lan...

The guidelines say to manage risk. But what if the guidelines are the problem? In this episode of Dysphagia Research Bites, Dr Shaun O'Keeffe and I unpack his critique of the Royal College of Physicians' guidance on eating and drinking difficulties, and we ask the question that too few clinicians are asking: is our fear of aspiration actually driving good practice, or just driving restrict...

If you've ever felt uncertain about whether cervical auscultation belongs in your clinical toolkit, this episode is for you. In this episode of Dysphagia Research Bites, Chantelle sits down with Associate Professor Liza Bergstrom to unpack the evidence behind cervical auscultation, why it became so controversial, and why recent high-quality research suggests it deserves a proper place in your...

In this episode, Chantelle sits down with Tiffani Wallace, a dysphagia specialist with a passion for rehabilitation, to break down a 2016 case series study on the Intensive Dysphagia Rehabilitation Approach (IDRA) ™ in patients with neurogenic dysphagia. In this episode they cover: What the IDR approach actually involves and why it's more accessible than it sounds The three core components of...

In part 2, Chantelle continues her conversation with Jackie Rodriguez, SLP, picking up where they left off on the dual diagnosis of dysphagia and dementia. In this episode they cover: How dementia affects the visual field and what this can mean at mealtimes Practical approaches to assessing vision and how you can compensate for these impairments in your management approach Using sensory strategies...

Dysphagia & Dementia: What we need to learn & unlearn If you're a speech pathologist working with adults with dementia, you already know that dysphagia doesn't show up in isolation. It shows up alongside memory loss, behavioural & sensory changes, communication breakdowns and alongside an aging swallow. In part 1 of this episode of Dysphagia Research Bites, Chantelle sits down...

If you're a speech pathologist working in the community, you already know it feels different to the hospital. But did you know the research actually backs that up? In this episode of Dysphagia Research Bites, Chantelle sits down with Dr Simone Howells from Griffith University to unpack her research on community-based dysphagia practice and why the skills that made you great in the hospital mig...