December 2015 Newsletter
Merry Christmas from DiagnosTEX!
Welcome to the Clinical Café
Consultants in Dysphagia Evaluation and Management
817-514-MBS1 or 1-888-514-MBS1
By: Ronda Polansky, M.S. CCC-SLP
December 2015 DiagnosTEX Newsletter
As we turn 12 years old, our thoughts turn gratefully to those who have made our success here in D/FW possible. In this spirit we say simply but sincerely, may the gift of peace that surpasses all understanding, as well as indescribable joy be yours at Christmas and throughout the
New Year of 2016!
Everyone at DiagnosTEX wishes all of you a very Merry Christmas!
It’s a Giving time of year! It is better to give than to receive and we enjoy giving back to you for your trust in us!
- Its back! The 2016 DiagnosTEX Dysphagia Calendar will be ready this month! J
- Educational handouts for treating SLPs– Dysphagia Diets for the Holiday Season for Family Education
- DiagnosTEX Dysphagia Anatomy clipboards to all of the SLP’s we service – Our most requested item, which we have not had in years is our gift to you this year! This is just a token of our appreciation for your support and friendship. DiagnosTEX thanks you for the honor of being part of your dysphagia management team and for trusting us with your patients!
DiagnosTEX December Holiday Schedule – This year Christmas and New Year’s fall on a Friday. DiagnosTEX will operate Monday-Thursday the week of Christmas, but Thursday Christmas Eve will be a ½ day. We will also run Monday -Thursday the following week of New Years, but will run only a ½ day on Thursday New Years Eve. We want to meet all of your MBSS needs; we know PO feeding becomes very important on several levels to many patients and their families around the holidays. The days prior to the holidays are long for us as we work very hard to get everyone’s requests completed. We must also be considerate to all of our DiagnosTEX employees and their families. Please keep these holiday schedules in mind when scheduling your MBSS in December!
******Please take note and keep in mind during this busy time of year******
ASAP requests often cannot be accommodated to the satisfaction of those requesting it.
Specific requests for specific times and/or days become exponentially difficult to accommodate and therefore, we may be unable to quickly schedule your patient with any specific time and day requests. Please notify your staff, patients, and families as such. Being mobile allows the convenience of the service coming to you – not for the customized flexibility of schedules and times. We are a venue option for an MBSS and we must schedule our mobile clinics for efficiency and cost effectiveness. If you or the patient and family require a specific time and/or day, please consider a free-standing outpatient facility (e.g., a hospital).
Christmas Ideas for your favorite CFY or SLP evaluating and treating dysphagia!
ABOVE and BEYOND
Patient, Caregiver, and Healthcare Professional Educational Reference Sheets and Handouts for Effective Dysphagia Rehabilitation.
By: Ronda Polansky M.S. CCC-SLP
Over 30 handouts on specific disorders in dysphagia in ONE location to use in your practice, plus a resource section for SLP’s on cranial nerve testing, pharyngeal exercises, and treatment techniques. A must have booklet in your therapy bag!! Cost: $40.00. Holiday Discount $30.00 (+S&H). Call us & we will get one out to you! Thank you to all who have ordered already and have also recommended it to others.
What You Can’t See at Bedside Educational DVD – $60.00, Holiday Price $40.00 (+S &H)
DVD includes 12 MBSS showing aspiration, Zenker’s Diverticulum, Parkinson’s disease, pharyngeal obstruction etc.
Facility In-services! – We have been very busy with Facility in-services! Thank you ALL for having us out! We have so enjoyed seeing you and sharing this information with your staff. We are booked into January!
BREAKING NEWS! We are now taking most HUMANA!
Unpredictable Weather in Texas – It’s been a warm winter… so far!
Unfortunately in Texas we do not get a beautiful flaky snowfall, we get ice (usually black ice). Our weather can change overnight! Last year we had a terrible snowstorm and it shut our vans down for 4 days. This kind of weather obviously becomes a problem for anyone who travels. Most of our daily routine is traveling extensively in all directions! As winter approaches and the threat of severe weather conditions arise, DiagnosTEX owners and drivers will evaluate the conditions of the roads and DiagnosTEX will contact all scheduled facilities immediately if we are unable to meet our appointments for that day. If the weather conditions are severe, we will cancel the day and reschedule the studies as promptly as possible.
Dysphagia Tidbit – Holiday Food Consistencies
Turkey
Slices – Solid
Legs – Solid
Fried – Solid
Ham
Sliced – Solid
Chopped – MS
Ham Salad – MS
Cranberry sauce
With whole/chopped berry – MS
Without whole berry – Puree
Stuffing -With nuts – MS to solid depending on type of nuts
Without nuts – Thick puree, esp with gravy
Pumpkin pie
With Crust – MS
Without crust – Puree
Apple Pie – MS any way you look at it
Pecan Pie – MS to solid depending on how the pecans were cooked
Mashed Potatoes– Puree
Sweet Potatoes – Puree
With Marshmallows – consider oral motor, this is thick and sticky
Egg Nog
Some very close to nectar, but thickener can be added to ensure this, without changing consistency much
Apple Cider – thin liquid
Bread
Rolls – Soft regular