February 2019

IN THIS BITE
  • Successful and exciting events across the globe
  • Reminder Notice: Use of IDDSI Logo and IDDSI Framework
  • New IDDSI Resources for 2019
  • Updating our Website
  • Webinar Series 2019 - University of Michigan
  • IDDSI Translations
  • IDDSI on the Move
EXCITING EVENTS ACROSS THE GLOBE
London, United Kingdom:

The  UK IDDSI Festival and Congress in London on February 18, 2019 was a great success. The event was interactive to promote discussion and learning between professional bodies (RCSLT, BDA and NHS-I), 8 commercial exhibitors, and over 200 participants. On-stage presentations featured implementation stories, live cooking & testing demonstrations, and there were plenty of samples of excellent texture modified foods & drinks to try. The event was supported by UCL’s Institute of Healthcare Engineering. The UK are fully adopting IDDSI from April 2019, with many settings already implementing IDDSI. 

Ben Hanson’s presentation from this event is available on youtube through this link .

Titled How Thick? Being specific with measurements , it covers the rationale for testing, reviews different methods and describes the IDDSI measurements including the flow test, fork pressure test and spoon tilt test.

The presentation concludes with recommendations on how to get the most from measurement in practice: use IDDSI as a tool for communication of clinical decisions, it is not an instruction manual or rule book.
Brussels, Belgium:

Belgium Society of Swallowing Disorders (BSSD) and Nestle Health Science Benelux hosted an incredibly successful inter-professional conference: IDDSI: Together for quality and security on February 19, 2019. Over 160 participants from speech therapy, dietetics, culinary & food services, nursing, medicine came together at the Erasmus Hospital to learn and share experiences about IDDSI implementation at several hospitals, healthcare settings in Belgium and the Netherlands.  Participants were also treated to some delicious IDDSI level foods/drinks and participated in interactive IDDSI testing. Many thanks to Jan Vanderwegen, IDDSI Board, BSSD and the amazing team at Nestle Health Science Benelux!
IDDSI was also featured at a half day workshop  Make your diet future proof on February 20, 2019 at Thomas Moore University in Geel, Belgium with nutrition and dietetic students, industry representatives and health professionals.  A variety of presenters shared information about IDDSI implementation, IDDSI friendly products and serving IDDSI desserts at a Special Olympics event.
Minneapolis-St Paul, USA:

Almost 100 participants attended the IDDSI workshop hosted by the Twin Cities SLP group in St Paul, Minnesota. In addition to IDDSI presentations, participants had the opportunity to get “hands- on” experience using the IDDSI testing methods.
Academy of Dietetics and Nutrition (AND) Webinar, USA
An upcoming IDDSI webinar United States IDDSI Implementation: What does it mean ? is being presented on February 27, 2019. It is being hosted by AND has reached capacity with approximately 1000 registrants. More updates after the webinar.
 
Dysphagia Research Society (DRS) Conference, San Diego, CA, USA 
Come and visit us at the IDDSI booth during the conference on Mar 7 & 8, 2019.
IMPORTANT REMINDER: Use of IDDSI Logo & IDDSI Framework
We would like to kindly remind everyone that the IDDSI logo is NOT to be used in any electronic or  printed materials, website, promotion information, communications unless authorized by IDDSI to do so. 

The use of the IDDSI logo may mislead customers/audiences to perceive that products or materials are uniquely endorsed or certified by IDDSI.

We are reserving the use of the IDDSI logo for official IDDSI materials and resources, so they can be easily identified. We very much appreciate everyone’s understanding and cooperation. 
 
That being said, you do not need special permission to download and use the materials available on our website. When referencing IDDSI on your printed materials, website, promotion information, communications, we would recommend that you use the name  International Dysphagia Diet Standardisation Initiative (IDDSI) and reference  www.IDDSI.org as the source.
 
If the IDDSI framework or any IDDSI material is reproduced in any electronic or printed materials, website, promotion information, communications, please be sure to cite the creative commons license:

The International Dysphagia Diet Standardisation Initiative 2016 @https://iddsi.org/framework/
 
Attribution is NOT PERMITTED for derivative works incorporating any alterations to the IDDSI Framework that extend beyond language translation. Supplementary Notice: Modification of the diagrams or descriptors within the IDDSI Framework is DISCOURAGED and NOT RECOMMENDED. Alterations to elements of the IDDSI framework may lead to confusion and errors in diet texture or drink selection for patients with dysphagia. Such errors have previously been associated with adverse events including choking and death.

NEITHER the IDDSI logo or the IDDSI framework are be used for advertising, product labeling, promotion or sales
IDDSI Poster Series
We are pleased to share the rest of our Poster series.  We now have a variety of different IDDSI posters to use as quick and easy references. Post these in all areas of your facility! 

  • IDDSI Framework Adult and Paediatric – food, drinks and testing methods
  • IDDSI Framework Adult and Paediatrics – Drinks 
  • IDDSI Framework Adult and Paediatrics – Foods
  • IDDSI Framework Adult Food and Drinks
  • IDDSI Framework Pediatric Food and Drinks
Consumer Handouts - all IDDSI levels in Paediatric and Adult options
If you have not yet had a chance to check out our new Consumer Handouts, we encourage you to do so. Each Food Level (3-7 including the new Reg 7 EC) and Drink Levels (0-4) of the IDDSI framework is described for pediatrics and adults along with the essential testing methods.  In addition we have included: 

  • Examples of foods that may be appropriate for a particular IDDSI Level
  • Example lists of foods to avoid 
  • A handout on Transitional foods
  • An FAQ on when to transition from baby/child size to adult food sizes.
  • A handout explaining IDDSI and how it can help improve safety.
Having trouble printing our consumer handouts?
We are aware that people have had some difficulty printing the handouts.  We have made some changes and suggest the following troubleshooting tips:
  • Make sure your pdf reader software is up-to-date; 
  • Make sure the printer driver software is up-to-date
  • If using Adobe choose  the advanced print options to ‘print as image’.
  • Select “print to fit” on your print options.
Updating our Website

Just a reminder, we are working on updating our current Framework, Descriptor and Testing Method documents on the IDDSI website to align with some of our new resources and the new Level 7 Regular Easy to Chew.  

We will keep you posted in our e-bites about the status of these updates. Resource development and updates are completed by the volunteer members of the IDDSI Board of Directors so we appreciate your patience.
Register now for our next exciting webinar offered on March 11 and 12, 2019: Implementation in an Academic Hospital setting: University of Michigan.
 
This one-hour presentation by Kit Werner, RD and Sarah Russell , SLP from the University of Michigan will outline the process this committed group went through implementing IDDSI at their acute care academic hospitals, highlighting both the facilitators and barriers encountered along the way. 
 
The presenters will cover aspects such as gaining support for the initiative; obtaining necessary materials and technical support; education; implementation and quality assessments. They will also discuss future plans to help continue growing.
 
Speakers: 
Kit Werner PhD, RDN, MS currently serves as the Director for Patient Food and Nutrition Services and the Michigan Medicine Dietetic Internship at the University of Michigan.
 
Sarah Russell MS CCC-SLP, BCS-S has been at Michigan Medicine for five years and has also worked at hospitals in Boston and Chicago. 
 
There is no cost to our webinar but you must register. Webinars are recorded and will be posted on our IDDSI website. 
IDDSI Translations
Looking for a translated version of the IDDSI Framework, Descriptors or Testing Methods?
Check our completed translations tab on the IDDSI website for the following:
Chinese (simplified), Farsi, French (Canada), French (France), Italian, Norwegian, Portuguese (Brazil), Spanish and Swahili.

Languages currently up for review include:     
Arabic, Dutch, German, Greek, Japanese, Russian, Slovenian and Vietnamese.  Are you fluent in any of these languages?  If so, please consider reviewing these documents and adding any comments or suggestions for the translation before final posting.
 
Languages in progress:
Thai, Turkish, Hindi, Hebrew, Urdu, Zulu, Portuguese (Portugal), and Marathi.

Do you speak a language not currently under translation? Would you be willing to provide a translation? We want to hear from you.

We now have an easier online-based translation feedback form.

Check out our Translations tab.
IDDSI on the Move
  • January 2019- Flemish Association of Speech Language Pathologists conference, Belgium
  • January 2019 - NYU Intersession course: Dysphagia and Nutrition
  • February 2019 – Twin Cities IDDSI conference, St Paul, Minnesota, USA
  • February 2019 – UK IDDSI Congress & Festival, UK
  • February 2019 - Belgium IDDSI Congress, Brussels, BE
  • March 2019 - Dysphagia Research Society Conference, San Diego, CA, USA
  • May 2019 - Canadian Society of Nutrition Management Conference, Calgary, AB, Canada
  • June 2019 - Dietitians of Canada Conference, Ottawa, ON, Canada
  • June 2019 - Association of Nutrition & Foodservice Professionals Conference, St. Louis, MO, USA
  • June 2019 Speech Pathology Australia and New Zealand Speech-Language Therapists’ Association Joint Conference, Brisbane, Australia

Please let us know what you are doing in your part of the world. We would be happy to share it with the rest of the world.
Connect with us on social media & let us know your thoughts!