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Developing and Implementing a Telehealth Enhanced Interdisciplinary Pediatric Feeding Disorders Clinic: a Program Description and Evaluation

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Abstract

Pediatric feeding problems are highly prevalent in the general population and reportedly higher in populations of youth with disabilities. A variety of treatment approaches and settings have been explored yet challenges with generalization to home and community settings continue to be experienced. Telehealth enhanced interdisciplinary feeding services are one response to these challenges. This study described a model for outpatient feeding services serving clients with intellectual and developmental disabilities within a coordinated health care model through a telehealth enhanced clinic. Further a cost savings analysis demonstrated a savings in travel time and travel costs relevant to receiving services. Practical recommendations for practitioners who are interested in using telehealth enhanced services for pediatric feeding problems were discussed.

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Notes

  1. See Bloomfield et al. (2018) and Fischer et al. (2015) for more information about shaping procedures for feeding.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Utah, 1721 Campus Center Drive SAEC 3220, Salt Lake City, UT, 84112, USA

    Racheal R. Clark, Aaron J. Fischer & Erica L. Lehman

  2. University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL, USA

    Bradley S. Bloomfield

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  1. Racheal R. Clark
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  2. Aaron J. Fischer
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  3. Erica L. Lehman
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  4. Bradley S. Bloomfield
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Correspondence to Aaron J. Fischer.

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Funding

The telehealth enhanced program described in this manuscript was funded in part by the Autism Council of Utah.

Ethical Approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Informed Consent

Informed consent was obtained in this study for all human subjects.

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On behalf of all authors, the corresponding author states that there is no conflict of interest.

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Clark, R.R., Fischer, A.J., Lehman, E.L. et al. Developing and Implementing a Telehealth Enhanced Interdisciplinary Pediatric Feeding Disorders Clinic: a Program Description and Evaluation. J Dev Phys Disabil 31, 171–188 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10882-018-9652-7

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