Week 3 Flashcards
What is Mealtime?
What is practice?
Mealtime: A time which a meal is eaten
Practice: A habitual way of doing something
Mealtime Practices: Habits, customs and procedures and which people partake in during mealtime. Mealtime environment is just as important in aural motor skills in swallowing. The exact meaning of mealtime practices vary depending on the context e.g. what we are eating, where, why and who with.
What is involved in mealtime practices?
- Connection
- Family
- Creativity
- Breakfast
- Friends
- Celebration
- Social
- Fuel
- Experimenting
- New foods
- Fun
- Dinner
Stressful/ unpleasant in some situations
What is included in mealtime practices in the healthcare perspective?
- Positive mealtime experiences
- Mealtime environment
- Eating schedules
- Mealtime routines
- Assisted/protected mealtimes
- Modified diets and fluids
- Aspiration and choking risks
- Nutritional intake
- External feeding
These are different from social and public view of mealtime practices
What does SPA have to say regarding mealtime practices?
Humans swallow 500-700 ties a day and more during meals, however 1 million Australians have a swallowing difficulty
Why do we learn about mealtime practices?
Part of a speech pathologists job is to support people to swallow safely. They help with;
- Modifying food and fluid for people to swallow safely
- Modifying posture and positioning to ensure safe oral intake
- Recommending environment modifications, utensils and cups for optimum oral intake
- Recommending oral hygiene strategies for safe oral intake
- Advocating for enjoyable appropriate mealtimes
Advocating for individual preference
What are people at risk of if their mealtime practices are disrupted?
- Malnutrition
- Dehydration
- Poor growth/ failure to thrive
Impacted brain development
Why do we advocate for person-centered mealtime practices?
- Access to food and water is a basic human right, and some people do not have access to these rights.
Why do we need to advocate for person centered mealtime practices:
ICESCR Article 11 states:
‘…the right of everyone to an adequate standard of living for himself and his family, including adequate food, clothing and housing, and to the continuous improvement of living conditions’
‘…the fundamental right of everyone is to be free from hunger, shall take, individually and through international co-operation, the measures, including specific programs which are needed;
a. To improve methods of production, conservation and distribution of food by making full use of technical and scientific knowledge, by disseminating knowledge of the principles of nutrition and by developing or reforming agrarian systems in such a way to achieve the most efficient development and utilization of natural resources. Taking into account the problems of both food-importing and food-exporting countries to ensure an equitable distribution of world food supplies in relation to need'
Physical environment of mealtimes?
When we eat and drink together, we cement ties with those we share the experience with. We form bonds connections; we tap into the primitive need for a ‘pack’. Humans are social beings. Social isolation can lead to poor health outcomes. e.g. eating on a date, at work, at home, with people you know vs don’t know so well
Factors impacting swallowing?
- Medical condition
- Poor oral hygiene
- Medication use
- Breathing difficulties
- Age
- Reflux
- Surgery
- Cognitive decline
Factors impacting mealtime practices?
- Reflection on mealtimes - what, where, who
- Influences of mealtimes
- Purpose of mealtimes - communication, nutrition, socialization
Impact of food design - appeal, look, taste, texture
Non-medical factors that influence health outcomes?
- Income and social protection
- Education
- Unemployment and job insecurity
- Working life conditions
- Food insecurity
- Housing, basic amenities and environment
- Early childhood development
- Social inclusion and non-discrimination
- Structural conflict
- Access to affordable health services of decent quality
What is the International Classification for Functioning, Disability and Health: ICF Framework?
- A framework for working with a consumer holistically, through the conceptualization, classification and measurement of disability
- Supports development of a shared understanding of disability between the provider and consumer
Supports providers and consumers to have a conversation e.g. what the consumer wants, factors of their environment
- Supports development of a shared understanding of disability between the provider and consumer
How do we reflect on mealtimes?
Everyone is unique and have different responses to factors.
What:
- What did you eat
- Linked to culture
- Linked to beliefs about food and nutrition
- Linked to financial means and food security
Where:
- The characteristics of the physical environment you are consuming food
Why:
- The purpose of our meal e.g. nutrition, celebration, habit, comfort
Who:
- With ourselves and others
How:
- Our utensils
At a table or on the floor
What is the purpose of mealtimes?
- Communication
- Physical health
- Socialization
- Habit
- Family, culture, community
- Giving and receiving love and social relationships
Celebration
What factors influence mealtime practices?
Personhood: the statis of being a person (liberty, equality, citizenship)
Social interaction: An exchange between two or more individuals
Environment: the circumstances by which one is surrounded
Food/Drink preferences: a greater liking to a food/drink over another.
- In conjunction to swallowing and feeding exam, we can provide a plan to support participation in the meal
