December 2025 IDDSI e-bite

As we near the end of another busy and eventful year, the IDDSI Board of Directors wish to extend our very best wishes to our global IDDSI community along with our deep appreciation to our many, many volunteers, sponsors and supporters who continue to work tirelessly to bring IDDSI implementation to more and more regions around the world. We wish you all happiness, health and special time with family and friends. We look forward to working together in 2026.

Take a moment to reflect…

World Swallowing Day – December 12, 2025 

We hope you had a moment on December 12, 2025 to think about people of all ages around the globe who are experiencing eating, drinking and swallowing difficulties and the impact it has on their daily lives.

World Swallowing Day falls on the last month of the year when so many of us are marking the end of one year and the beginning of the next, often with celebrations and time together. Most of these celebrations involve special foods of significance. For those who have trouble eating, drinking and swallowing, these celebrations can be challenging and even at times, isolating.   

In this e-bite, we would like to acknowledge and celebrate a few of the amazing not-for-profit organizations who provide connection, advocacy and support to those living with dysphagia and their families and caregivers. 

NFOSD is a virtual organization with a global impact. It was started in California by a patient with dysphagia and her Physician and Speech Language Pathologist. The NFOSD is a nonprofit patient advocacy organization that supports people living with swallowing disorders and their caregivers across the age spectrum. By enhancing direct patient support, providing high-quality free education, promoting promising research, and raising public, professional, and governmental awareness, our mission is to advance the prevention and treatment of swallowing disorders in our lifetime. 

Interested in finding out more about NFOSD? https://swallowingdisorderfoundation.com/  

Interested in finding out more? https://agingswallowlab.healthsci.mcmaster.ca/my-resources/support-group/ 

We applaud these organizations and look forward to featuring other support organizations in future e-bites. Please reach out to us and tell us about an organization in your part of the globe. Contact Us

Global Updates

Canada:  We are sharing some recipes with IDDI Standards and IDDSI Testing Methods in mind. Read all of the highlights in the December Can-Do newsletter on the CIRG webpage

Happy holidays and New Year!

United States:  Introducing the US 2026 Virtual Conference - Registration is open!

For more information, check out the Nov/Dec newsletter, on our webpage USIRG webpage

If you are interested in joining an IDDSI Reference Group, please email the contact for the group. We welcome everyone who wants to help with guiding & fostering IDDSI implementation. Being part of a reference group is a great opportunity to meet IDDSI friends in your local, regional area. And you never know, something amazing may happen when great brains come together!

Don't see an IDDSI Reference Group for your practise or regional area? Interested in starting an IDDSI reference group to help support IDDSI implementation in your regional or practice area? Fill out the form here.

Webinars and IDDSI Learning

We're sorry for the technical difficulties!

Dear IDDSI Community,

Due to the overwhelming popularity of our webinar on Dec 11th, Dysphagia at the Festive Table: Embracing Everyone, we experienced a technical issue that our team was unable to troubleshoot during the live session. Unfortunately, this meant that some registrants were not able to access the presentation. We are truly sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused, and we appreciate your time and patience as we figured out a solution for you.

The On Demand access expires midnight December 30, 2025.

Your Certificate of Attendance will be emailed to you in the upcoming days.

We are so grateful for the support of the Nestle Health Science team to make this webinar happen. We hope you will join them and IDDSI in celebrating World Swallowing Day!

If you have any difficulties, please email us.

With gratitude,

IDDSI Webinars Team

2026 US IDDSI Virtual Conference

Tired of confusing questions about implementation?

Ready to arm yourself with better ways to advocate for the IDDSI framework across the continuum of care? 

Join IDDSI experts virtually throughout 2026 as they demystify all things IDDSI. Get clear answers to your most frequently asked questions and ensure safer, more consistent care for your patients and loved ones across the lifespan.

Dates: 6 session series, each at 12:00 PM EST, Online via Zoom

1. Wednesday, January 28, 2026: Becoming Familiar with IDDSI: Website and Resources
2. Wednesday, February 25, 2026: Forming Your Team
3. Wednesday, March 4, 2026: Your Own Personal IDDSI Implementation Calendar
4. Wednesday, April 29, 2026: Spread the Word! Education for Key Stakeholders
5. Wednesday, May 20, 2026: Check Out the Food and Drinks! Mapping and Menu Development
6. Wednesday, June 3, 2026: Clinical Communication: Assessment, Charting & Patient Materials

Meet our Feature Speakers for the January and February sessions! For their full bios and other speaker information go to the USIV Event

January 28, 2026:

• Mary Rybicki, MS, RDN, LDN Mary is a dietitian with diverse clinical and management experience in post-acute care settings. Mary has an MS in Dietetics from MGH Institute of Health Professions and a MMHS, Master of Management of Human Services, from Brandeis University.
• Karen Sheffler, MS, CCC-SLP, BCS-S Karen is a medical speech-language pathologist specializing in dysphagia for 30 years, with a master's degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1995.
• Rene Kanadet, MS, CCC-SLP, BCS-S, Moderator Rene has been practicing as a speech pathologist since 2010 and has been board certified in swallowing disorders since 2019. She received her BS from the University of Illinois and her MS from Rush University.

February 25, 2026:

• Carly Edwards MS, RD, LDN Carly is a registered dietitian with over 10 years of experience in acute care, long term care, food service management, sales and group purchasing. She graduated in 2014 with a Master’s Degree in Clinical Nutrition and Dietetics from the University of Pittsburgh. 
• Rob Melchionna, MS, CCC-SLP, BCS-S Rob is an SLP/Clinical Specialist at Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis, MA, where he works primarily with adults with swallowing disorders in an inpatient setting, and serves as a clinical resource for other SLPs in the hospital system.  Rob has been a Board Certified Specialist in Swallowing and Swallowing Disorders (BCS-S) since 2017.
• Carolyn “Carrie” Wade, MS, CCC-SLP, Moderator Carrie is a Clinical Assistant Professor, Medical Externship Coordinator, and Speech-Language Clinic Director at Indiana University-Bloomington. She specializes in adult dysphagia management with a focus on neurodegenerative populations and also teaches her university’s dysphagia course.

Conference Details:

• Register for the entire 6-session series, covering full IDDSI implementation, for $75.00 USD
• Sessions will be provided via Zoom platform (links will be shared after registration and ahead of meetings)
• Recordings will be available for 30 days after each session

CE/CPEU Information:

CBDM/ANFP for Dietary Managers - CDM, CFPPs

The 2026 US IDDSI Virtual Conference has been approved for 6 continuing education (CE) hours by the Certifying Board for Dietary Managers (CBDM).

CDR/AND: For RD/RDNs, DTR/NDTRs

The CPE Activity application for 2026 US IDDSI Virtual Conference is pending CDR review and approval for 6 CPEUs.

For program details and more information on each session, go to the US Virtual Conference Event page: US Virtual Event

Webinar: IDDSI Implementation and Culinary Q&A

Date: Wednesday, February 4, 2026

Time: 10:00am PT / 1:00pm ET

Summary: Your questions answered LIVE! This is a practical session focused on answering your questions on IDDSI implementation with a particular focus on culinary. The Canadian IDDSI Reference Group’s Culinary and LTC Working Group has assembled a panel of experts to provide an hour to answer your questions.

To register and for more information please go to: this link

If you have any suggestions for webinar topics, we’d love to hear them! Head over to our Contact Us form, choose subject “Webinars”, and let us know what you’d like to see in the upcoming months. 

Upcoming Events:

•  Join us for the UK Swallow Research Group (UKSRG) Conference 2026 — two inspiring days all about swallowing and dysphagia! Hear from leading international experts and discover cutting-edge research shaping the future of dysphagia care. February 4 - 5, 2026, Edgbaston Park Hotel, Birmingham. To register, scan the QR code below or click on the link here: Oxford Abstracts Delegate Registration

• DRS (Dysphagia Research Society) Annual Conference, March 4 - 7, 2026, Aurora Colorado 2026 Annual Conference - Dysphagia Research Society
• IV Latin American Dysphagia Congress (CLAD IV) organized by SLAD (Latin American Dysphagia Society) Conference, Wed, May 20 to Sat, May 23, 2026, Cancún, Mexico

From our IDDSI family to yours, we wish everyone a magical holiday season and Happy New Year!