artifact 10 - feeding team competency skills checklist

The practice of feeding, eating and swallowing is within the scope of occupational therapy practitioners. However, specific qualifications can vary dependent upon each state's specific practice guidelines. Moreover, feeding therapy can be provided by both an occupational therapist and speech language pathologist, at times creating further ambiguity. When approaching feeding therapy in medically complex children and neuromotor populations, many factors must be considered.

As a speech-language pathologist colleague and myself looked to further grow the feeding program, we knew all of these factors had to be considered. We also recognized it took time, collaboration and much continuing education for us both to arrive in a place of confidence and competence with our own feeding therapy practices. As we considered ways to support our colleagues on this endeavor as well, we felt a tool for establishing specific skills and competencies would be useful. Together we created a feeding team competency skills checklist, unique to our practice and the patients we most typically work with. This helped to ensure all members of the feeding team were cohesively qualified and felt confident in implementing feeding therapy interventions.