Michelle Dawson, MS, CCC-SLP, CLC

PFD from the Perspective of a Passionate Pediatrician Parent with Dr. Tessa Gonzalez

June 10th, 2021  |  1 hr 4 mins

asha, ceu, continuing education, slp, speech language pathology, speech pathology, speech therapy

Guest: Tessa Gonzalez, MD - Today’s episode centers around an intense and personal conversation with a very special guest who speaks candidly from the perspective of both a pediatrician and the passionate parent of a child who suffers from a rare genetic disorder that contributed to pediatric feeding disorder (PFD). Dr. Tessa Gonzalez is a close friend, a pediatrician with over 10 years of experience, and a mother to two beautiful girls, the eldest of which has been on a long journey with PFD. Tessa is also a volunteer with Feeding Matters, where she shares her invaluable experience with families navigating their way through the often confusing and difficult world of PFD. She is a fierce advocate for her daughter and is passionate about helping other families advocate for their loved ones too, which she explains in this episode. Tuning in, you’ll learn more about the importance of inter-professional education, collaboration, and communication, and Tessa shares her personal journey with PFD and why she believes that a feeding tube was the best possible solution for her family at the time. Make sure not to miss this episode!

Dysphagia Awareness with Dysphagia Outreach Project

June 2nd, 2021  |  1 hr 6 mins

asha, ceu, continuing education, slp, speech language pathology, speech pathology, speech therapy

Guest: Dysphagia Outreach Project - The Dysphagia Outreach Project is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide meaningful assistance to individuals affected by dysphagia. Today on the show we invite Allie Mataras, Amanda Weissberg, Allison Boyer, Jessica Lasky, Hillary Cooper, and Michelle Coffaro from the Dysphagia Outreach Project’s Board of Directors to talk about how they have come together to work on this project as volunteers and the great things they are doing for the community. The original idea came from Hillary and she kicks things off by talking about how she was disturbed by a general lack of access to supplies experienced by patients and how she wanted to take the initiative to fix this. Hillary teamed up with Michelle and Jessica and our next two guests weigh in on the contributions they made to get the idea off the ground. Jessica speaks about the role she plays in the organization in the fields of education and advocacy and the Michelle shares her responsibilities as VP of operations. Michelle runs the food bank in Cincinnati and we hear about the incredible wealth of supplies they distribute. From there, we hear from Allie and her work as Director of Fundraising before getting to know Amanda and the contributions she has made on the social media front as Captain of Instagram for the public relations team. Wrapping up, we meet our final guest, Allison Boyer, who manages the DOP Facebook page where she helps assemble literature reviews of the most current research in the field to be distributed freely to all who are interested. So for all this and more about an amazing project that stands testimony to the power of purpose-driven teamwork, tune in today!

Acute Care for the PFD Patient with Dana Entwistle

May 26th, 2021  |  1 hr 2 mins

asha, ceu, continuing education, slp, speech language pathology, speech pathology, speech therapy

Guest: Dana Entwistle MS, CCC-SLP - Today we are really lucky to have an amazing person and fantastic clinician join us on the show! Dana Entwistle is a pediatric feeding clinical specialist at Levine Children's Hospital in Charlotte, North Carolina, and we get to hear from her all about what that entails. She goes into her personal journey in the profession and the college years that proceeded it. From there, our guest shares the important elements of her current role at Levine, touching on building trust, patient assignment, the hospital space, patient variation and so much more. Dana underlines the importance of the right kind of communication, especially around the tricky and confusing technical side of feeding problems. She has spearheaded the inclusion of more data into the processes she is involved in, something she believes is vital in the constant improvement of healthcare. Listeners can expect to gain some real insight into Dana's philosophy as well as some inspiration for how to be influential and understanding in the feeding space too! This conversation with Dana promises to lead into many more, so make sure to stay tuned for those too!

Pediatric Dysphagia and Progressive Disorders with Erin Forward

May 21st, 2021  |  51 mins 54 secs

asha, ceu, continuing education, slp, speech language pathology, speech pathology, speech therapy

Guest: Erin Forward, MSP, CCC-SLP, CLC - In this episode Michelle is joined once again by her favorite cohost Erin Forward, MSP CCC-SLP, CLC, as they tackle the tricky topic of progressive disorders and pediatric dysphagia. Palliative Care and Hospice are two words that are often avoided in the world of pediatrics, however, in honor of Pediatric Feeding Disorder Month, Michelle and Erin are going to have the crucial conversation regarding what a progressive pediatric disorder is, discuss three more prevalent progressive disorders, and then discuss our role in the evaluation and treatment process. While the topic may be a difficult one to address, remember, we are called to serve the least of these and infuse joy and evidenced based-practice into their care.

All Things SOFFI® with Dr. Erin Ross, PhD, CCC-SLP

May 12th, 2021  |  1 hr 4 mins

asha, ceu, continuing education, slp, speech language pathology, speech pathology, speech therapy

Guest: Dr. Erin Ross, PhD, CCC-SLP - Today we have an extra special episode that we are so excited to share with all of our listeners! Dr. Erin Ross, the brains and heart behind the SOFFI course, joins us today to talk about her amazing career in feeding therapy, her work developing the SOFFI method, thoughts moving forward, and so much more! We get into a deep and impactful discussion on the lessons that Dr. Ross has learned and continues to share through her work, covering misconceptions, diagnoses, the research that backs up her work, and her favorite parts of her job. Dr. Ross makes a special point to underline the centering of the parents and the time they spend with infants, showing why we should focus on this chunk of experience as the most impactful entry- point to helping children. We also get into some thoughts on specialization, the quality versus quantity debate, and some of the mistakes that seem to often crop up in the pediatric space. Listeners can expect to come away with a sense of purpose, as well as a renewed enthusiasm for this work; Dr. Ross' passion is contagious and her commitment to joyful, research-backed strategies is truly inspiring. So join us on the show for all this and more!

Interprofessional Practice for the NICU with Casey Lewis

May 5th, 2021  |  1 hr 11 secs

asha, ceu, continuing education, slp, speech language pathology, speech pathology, speech therapy

The Power of Gratitude and Parent Coaching with Marie Muratalla

April 28th, 2021  |  1 hr 7 mins

asha, ceu, continuing education, slp, speech language pathology, speech pathology, speech therapy

In this episode, the presenter who works with preschool aged patients, shares her keen insight into how to embrace parent coaching with school aged little ones, the benefits of focusing on gratitude with routines based intervention for EI and preschoolers, and how embedding acts of gratitude with these ages and their caregivers can bring joy to the entire team. Get your pencils and journals ready… Michelle and Maria are ready to roll!

Connecting the Dots Between PFD and Neurogenic Conditions with Erin Forward

April 14th, 2021  |  1 hr 1 min

asha, ceu, continuing education, slp, speech language pathology, speech pathology, speech therapy

Have you ever noticed a trend on your pediatric feeding disorder caseload in which you see a couple of patients with similar GI complaints, or similar cardiopulmonary complaints, but there is an unknown etiology? Michelle and Erin spend this hour reviewing the technical details of what a pediatric feeding disorder is, various types of neurogenic conditions that you may commonly encounter, and how all those bits and pieces connect together, and your role in all of it.

Self-Care for the SLP in a Hurry with Kayla Duncan

April 6th, 2021  |  1 hr 2 mins

asha, ceu, continuing education, slp, speech language pathology, speech pathology, speech therapy

Michelle is joined by the effervescent Kayla Duncan, MS in Applied Psychology, Francis Marion University’s Assistant Director of Counseling and Testing, adjunct professor, and advocate for student and clinician’s mental health. The presenters spend an hour getting into the details on signs and symptoms of caregiver fatigue and burnout, quick functional strategies that you can implement lying in bed in the morning or in the afternoon school carline pickup. But what about when those functional strategies are just not covering it? Kayla shares her resources on how to obtain professional resources for yourself and Michelle shares resources on support teams and groups for our patient’s caregivers.

Cultural Conversations with ‘Made in India SLP' with Rabab Rangwala and Kinnari Satra

March 30th, 2021  |  1 hr 3 mins

asha, ceu, continuing education, slp, speech language pathology, speech pathology, speech therapy

In this hour, Michelle is joined by Rabab Rangwala, M.S.,CCC-SLP & Kinnari Satra, M.S.,CCC-SLP, cohosts of the “Made in India SLP” Podcast! Rabab and Kinnari share experiences and evidence for improving cultural competency when completing assessments and treatments for individuals with both language and swallowing disorders even including details on how to create a dynamic and authentic assessment for data collection and report writing. The ladies then share strategies for how to make teletherapy more inclusive for the children and their families that we work with specifically targeting the early intervention and school-aged child.

The Case for Pediatric Chronic Cough with Andrea Storie

March 24th, 2021  |  1 hr 4 mins

asha, ceu, continuing education, slp, speech language pathology, speech pathology, speech therapy

Guest: Andrea Storie, M, ClSc, CCC-SLP - In this episode Michelle is joined by Andrea Storie, MCLSC CCC-SLP, a professional whose focus is on evaluation and treatment of pediatric chronic cough and voice disorders. Whenever a pediatric feeding disorder SLP hears a child cough, instantly our ears perk up and we start wondering, “What is going on in there?” But did you know that some children develop a habit cough that is not triggered by penetration/aspiration? Andrea will educate and inspire us as to the signs and symptoms of pediatric habit cough, the interprofessional team that is needed to diagnose it, and the current evidenced based practice strategies to help treat a pediatric cough.

Functional Language Therapy Tips You Can Implement Tomorrow with Erin Forward

March 18th, 2021  |  1 hr 4 mins

asha, ceu, continuing education, slp, speech language pathology, speech pathology, speech therapy

In this course, Michelle is joined by Erin Forward, and they’re back this month with functional strategies for language. They discuss how to embrace language acquisition within the framework of routines-based-intervention, the power of play, and how to encourage culturally competent language even with AAC.

Cari Ebert, MS CCC-SLP and Early Intervention Take II

March 10th, 2021  |  1 hr 7 mins

asha, ceu, continuing education, slp, speech language pathology, speech pathology, speech therapy

Cari inspires colleagues with her P.I.E. analogy and offers functional strategies on what an appropriate parent-driven outcome really looks like with respect to goal writing. If you’ve ever worried about best practice for the dreaded data collection, breathe a sigh of relief, and brace yourself for side splitting laughter, while Cari and Michelle speak the truth on data for Early Intervention.

Grace and Grief: Strategies for SLPs in this Season of Life with Lisa Bjelland, MSW, PsyD, and Monte Torkelsen, M.Div

March 2nd, 2021  |  1 hr 1 min

asha, ceu, continuing education, slp, speech language pathology, speech pathology, speech therapy

In this episode Michelle is joined by Lisa Bjelland MSW and Psy D, who works as a trauma therapist and Monte Torkelsen, M Div, President of Abba's Child Grief Camps for an hour dedicated to finding grace in grief. The caregivers of our little ones that we work with can struggle through the various stages of grief. We, the licensed SLP on the interprofessional practice team, can also struggle with grief, especially when the little ones that we work with pass on. What are we to do? How can we help our caregivers? How can we help ourselves? Maintaining our emotional, psychological, physical, and spiritual health is critical. But simply finding the time to engage in the acts of self-care can in itself be a challenge for the busy SLP. Today, Michelle, Lisa, and Monte hold the crucial conversation to help you bring healing, comfort, and joy into your being, so you are better equipped to help others.

Polyvagal Theory and Practical Implications for Therapy with Dillen Hartley

February 23rd, 2021  |  1 hr 4 mins

asha, ceu, continuing education, slp, speech language pathology, speech pathology, speech therapy

In this hour, Dillen, OTR/L sheds light on the polyvagal theory and how this theory, that most of us haven’t heard of, impacts the patients that we evaluate. If you have a patient that has a past medical history of PTSD, ADD, ADHD, ASD, (and the list goes on), and they are struggling to attend and regulate, did you know that it could be a direct result of an impairment or delay in their fear response, emotional regulation, and social connection, as driven by the function of the vagus nerve? Dillen is here to enlighten and inspire while he gives you the evidence behind the polyvagal theory.

Functional Feeding Therapy Tips You Can Implement Tomorrow with Erin Forward

February 18th, 2021  |  1 hr 3 mins

asha, ceu, continuing education, slp, speech language pathology, speech pathology, speech therapy

If you are working in the world of Early Intervention, or thinking about making the switch, but unsure of how to implement routines-based intervention within the framework of treating a pediatric feeding disorder (PFD), then this hour on functional feeding strategies for you. Michelle and Erin walk you through how routines-based intervention allows you to ditch that dread bag of toys and chewys for good, advise you on how to include caregivers and siblings in treatment, as well as discuss the positively powerful evidenced behind slow incremental changes via tapered weaning protocol and how it can guide our patients on their PFD journey.