The Center for Pediatric Feeding & Swallowing Receives Award - St. Joseph's Healthcare System, Paterson New Jersey

The Center for Pediatric Feeding & Swallowing Receives Award

Treating nearly 5,000 children in its eight years of operation, the Center services 32 states and four countries and has an 88% average success rate of patients achieving or exceeding their goals.

As one of the few Centers in the world to focus on pediatric feeding and swallowing disorders, St. Joseph’s patients work with a variety of medical professionals from 54 different subspecialties. The Center’s employees work to meet the needs of children who face challenges related to the volume, texture, and variety of foods, with many children not gaining sufficient weight, said William Roche, clinical director.

“They eat things that are smooth because it makes their bellies feel better,” Mr. Roche said. “The majority of them coming in are… food-selective."

Feeding and Swallowing Session

With services provided one hour every two to three weeks, most children enter the program as outpatients. For those patients who are not making progress, the Center provides a day treatment program with more-intensive interventions. Ensuring that their patients receive the right mix of treatment, the Center’s employees enter each patient’s data at the end of the day.

Additionally, St. Joseph’s has instituted an eFeed telemedicine program, for those patients who are not located near St. Joseph’s.

“They (the patients) have this umbilical cord with the feeding center (eFeed computer linkage),” Mr. Roche said. “They come on screen at that (appointment) time. The child is in their (own) environment.”

One of the judges for the Spirit of Excellence C.A.R.E.S. Award category noted, “The program at St. Joseph’s could be a model for other hospitals.”

Founded by the Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth more than 140 years ago, St. Joseph’s Healthcare System encompasses St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center and St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital in Paterson, St. Joseph’s Wayne Hospital in Wayne, St. Vincent’s Nursing Home in Cedar Grove, and Visiting Health Services of NJ. For details, visit www.StJosephsHealth.org or call 877.757.SJHS (7547).