Day of Clinic Procedures
What will the day of the appointment be like?
The day of the appointment at the Feeding and Swallowing Clinic is a smooth and easy process!
Before your appointment day, make sure to spend 3 days recording your child's diet on our diet record form (DOC).
There are two other things to take note of before your appointment:
First, with your consent we can record your child's evaluation. This can be beneficial because the video can be shared with your child's other healthcare providers, therapists, and your child themselves for encouragement. Take some time before your visit to decide if you would like your visit to be recorded.
Secondly, we encourage you to include your child's other therapists or family members in clinic. Upon your request, other therapists, family members, or caregiver can participate in clinic via video conferencing so they can be a part of your evaluation. Or, you are welcome to have important people in your child's life attend clinic with you. Please let us know ahead of time if you would like anyone to participate via video so we can assist with setup.
On the day of the appointment, there are a few things to bring with you. Please bring:
- A few of your child's favorite foods/ foods that are easy for your child to eat
- Some foods you would like for your child to eat more of/ foods your child has a difficult time eating
- A few of your child's favorite things to use as motivation during clinic- videogame, tablet, toys, bubbles, stickers, etc.
Additional information
- A microwave is available at the center to warm up any foods you bring along for clinic.
- If possible, please give your child a light breakfast in the morning, so they will be ready to eat during your evaluation.
When you arrive to the Center, use the entrance at the top of the hill.
When you enter the building, our clinical services coordinator will greet you and ensure your required forms have been completed. These forms can be filled out prior to the appointment and emailed or faxed to our office. Please see our forms page to access these forms. Filling these forms out prior to your arrival will expedite the process.
After you have completed the forms, the clinical services coordinator will escort you on a short elevator ride to our clinic.
From there, our clinicians will greet you and walk you to the evaluation room.
Typically, the evaluation can take up to three hours. Your family will meet each team member, and your child's weight and height will be measured. Then, each expert enters the room individually to conduct their evaluation, and finally, the whole team assembles to discuss the plan with your family. Team members most often include a dietician, social worker, speech language pathologist, developmental psychologist, and occupational therapist. Each visit with our clinic is unique based on the needs of your child.
WVU students may be present to help or observe under the guidance of a supervisor.
After the evaluation is complete, you will be guided back to the entrance of the Center.
Our clinical services coordinator will follow up with you with your clinic report and other information such as follow-up appointments.
If you have any further questions about our clinic, please email cedclinics@hsc.wvu.edu or call 304-293-4692.