Mealtimes & Dysphagia
At Carapace Therapy Services we offer infants through to adults a range of services when it comes to mealtimes and dysphagia (difficulties swallowing).
We understand there are cultural differences when it comes to mealtimes, we listen to your needs and tailor our therapy to suit you and your family.
We believe that mealtimes are one of the pleasures of life and something that needs to be enjoyed and celebrated. We provide assessment and therapy in your natural/preferred environment.
Our Mealtime & Dysphagia services include:
Infant feeding assessment and therapy
There are many reasons why infant feeding challenges occur as it’s a highly complex and integrated process which involves numerous body systems. Feeding challenges can present as difficulties in the infant’s:
- Oromotor skills
- Meeting their nutritional requirements
- Environmental factors
- Sensory processes
- Interaction with carers
Oral Eating and Drinking Care Plans
Where an individual is unable to safely manage eating or drinking, and their food and drinks require modification, an oral eating and drinking care plan is needed to ensure the individual is appropriately supported and safe during mealtimes.
Individuals generally do not require a care plan for food phobias, eating disorders or oral sensitivities.
Tube Weaning
Our bodies fuel themselves with the food we eat. There are however several reasons why someone may not eat through their mouth. For those individuals feeding tubes are a lifeline. Tube weaning is the process required to transition from dependency on tube feedings to eating by mouth. When the time is right, under the guidance of the medical team, Carapace Therapy Services can support you and your family in the tube weaning process.
When it comes to tube feeding not one method fits all families and individuals. At Carapace Therapy Services we customise a plan to meet your needs. We provide in home therapy, ongoing support and collaboration with your medical and allied health team to ensure you feel confident and supported through this process.
Therapy for children/adolescents who eat a limited range of food
Fussy/picky eating is often the term generally described to a child or young person who is unwilling to eat familiar foods or try new foods and has a limited food repertoire. This is usually classified as part of a spectrum of feeding difficulties and depending on the severity it can lead to nutritional deficits and in extreme cases the needs for alternative feeding.
At Carapace Therapy Services we support our clients to increase the repertoire of food they will explore and eat while maintaining a happy and enjoyable relationship with food. We do this by looking at your child and family as a unit, and providing the most appropriate evidence-based intervention.
Dysphagia Therapy
Dysphagia therapy can look different depending on the age of the person, their diagnosis and developmental stage. It can consist of a combination of compensatory strategies including altering food/fluid consistencies, positioning strategies, as well as swallowing manoeuvres, which change the timing or strength of the movements of swallowing to safely move food or liquid in the mouth and throat safely to the oesophagus.
At Carapace Therapy Services we provide thorough assessment to determine the particular areas of difficulty for our clients, and provide the most appropriate strategies and supports based on our experience and latest evidence-based practice.
