AEIOU: An Integrated Approach to Pediatric Feeding – 20-Hour Comprehensive Professional Training Program

Learn a step-by-step approach for helping children explore food, enjoy eating, and participate independently in social mealtimes. The AEIOU approach- acceptance, exposure, independence, observation and understanding – is a responsive feeding approach that offers a highly successful method for integrated treatment of infants and young children with mild to complex etiologies. Learn to meet families where they are, provide effective family coaching and parent training, and make progress! Participants will leave with extensive knowledge resources, and practical information: improve quality of mealtime, manage tube dependency and transition to eating solid foods, treat sensory aversions, improve oral-motor skills, and more. This course will be presented live online, in an interactive learning environment, using case studies and videos to engage and instruct participants. Participants will be well equipped to help families achieve home carryover. Many special populations are discussed including: prematurity, GERD, allergies, autism, failure to thrive, tracheostomy, picky eaters, tongue and lip ties, and children with various syndromes.

Key Learning Outcomes: As a result of this presentation, the participant will be able to:

• Develop assessment and treatment strategies that integrate 5 management factors for biomedical and enviro-behavioral influences that limit successful feeding in infants and young children.
• Formulate strategies to achieve parent buy-in for home carryover, promote positive parent-child interaction, and help children participate independently in social mealtime routines.
• Identify contraindications for oral feeding and describe a 5-step treatment plan for advancing pre-feeding skills in non-oral feeders.
• Assess signs of distress and/or disengagement during feeding.
• Develop and implement treatment plans for oral feeding that expand taste repertoire and texture acceptance by incorporating strategies for the mealtime environment, seating/positioning, and oral-motor, sensory, and motor deficits.

Teaching Methods:
PowerPoint lecture, videos, demonstration case study, hands-on labs, and Q&A

Agenda:
Please see the course details page on the foodsmartkids website for the most up-to-date agenda.

Target Audience:
SLPs, OTs, PTs, Assistants, Educators. Appropriate for other professionals (social workers, nurses, dieticians, etc.) working with infants and young children with feeding problems.

About the Presenter:

Nina Ayd Johanson, a highly regarded clinician and renowned teacher with more than 25 years experience, is a senior speech language pathologist for an acclaimed children’s hospital where she is the founder and lead therapist of the TOTS Program (for infants with feeding problems due to tethered oral tissue). A Certified Lactation Counselor and Certified Educator of Infant Massage, Nina also works in private practice in Baltimore and lectures nationally. She has extensive experience in home-based early intervention and parent training specializing in the evaluation and treatment of children with oral motor/feeding disorders, complex medical issues, autism spectrum disorders, and other developmental disabilities. She holds a Master of Science in Speech-Language Pathology from Loyola College, and a Master of Arts in Applied Healing Arts from the Tai Sophia Institute. She is a board-certified Holistic Health Practitioner and was trained in integrative nutrition through the Center for Mind-Body Medicine’s “Food As Medicine”, the nation’s leading clinical nutrition training program for healthcare professionals.

Disclosures:

Presenter Disclosures:

Financial:
I have no relevant financial relationships in the products or services described, reviewed, evaluated or compared in this presentation. I receive a speaking fee for presenting this course.

Non-Financial:
I have no relevant non-financial relationships in the products or services described, reviewed, evaluated or compared in this presentation.

Content Disclosure:

This learning event does not focus exclusively on any specific product or service.