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Supporting Oral Motor Skills in the Infant

Assessment, Adaptation, and Remediation

A 7-hour, self-paced continuing education course that covers feeding dysfunction in neonates and young infants. 

OT, SLP, PT ENROLL HERE
IBCLC, DC, DDS ENROLL HERE

Why this oral motor course?

 

This course doesn't offer a cookie-cutter protocol of oral motor exercise. A fresh perspective to approaching oral motor assessment and intervention that will challenge your critical thinking skills

check out the course reviews

“Absolutely loved Kim and Kary's "less is more" approach to oral motor and emphasis on looking at the baby as a whole. As an experienced therapist, I had multiple moments where I cheered at the screen while watching, and I took away multiple new "gems" of information that will be helpful in practice. Kim and Kary are engaging and to the point; not one moment of this course is "idle" or wasted, it's jam packed with learning. If you are new to infant feeding, this course is absolute GOLD. It should be at the top of your list if you are looking to gain a good foundation in infant feeding. These insights will be practical and helpful for your clients and families, whether breast or bottle feeding. This course is what I wish had been available to me as a new therapist working with infants!"

Occupational Therapist

"This course was fantastic in that it was thorough yet focused. I really appreciated Kim and Kary's methodical approach starting with an A&P review, and always encouraging chasing the why so we know why we're selecting treatment options! I also love their care for babies and caregivers - we have such an important role during an extremely sensitive time and I love their focus on what each family can handle, compassionate education, and respecting the babies during evaluations and treatment rather than plowing ahead while they cry. Thank you for a wonderful course!!"

Speech Language Pathologist

“I loved how this course was organized and presented as I felt the information built on itself really nicely. I also really loved going back to really thinking about the "why" for the signs and symptoms present as I felt by the end of the course I was able to build on my own clinical reasoning skills and why you would select certain interventions. I also appreciated considering adaptive versus remediation approaches so the family can leave an appointment with action steps for supporting their baby where they are at. Highly recommend this course as a jumping-off point for therapists getting started in this area of practice. As a person who is not currently seeing this population but is building a program, I am walking away from this course with increased confidence in how to get started."

Occupational Therapist

"The course was very well organized and thorough. The clinicians clearly have a mastery of the topic and have experience both practicing and teaching/guiding others. I loved that they focused on the research and their own clinical reasoning skills and were able to give clear, logical explanations to their approach to complex treatments. I wish all continuing education courses would provide this level of evidence-based knowledge and experiential insight to practitioners."

Occupational Therapist

Learning Objectives for Supporting Oral Motor Skills in the Infant:

  • Examine differences between normal and abnormal oral motor development and feeding skill acquisition typically seen in neonates and infants
  • Analyze information on oral motor skill development and social-emotional well-being of both the infant and the caregiver to describe their impact on occupational participation and performance
  • Identify differences in oral skills and the underlying physiologic impairment that impacts successful feeding in infancy
  • Analyze information from the assessment of oral motor issues to determine the most appropriate interventions for breast and bottle feeding
  • Identify tools/equipment/adaptations available to support oral motor skills in order to enhance participation and performance of breast and bottle feeding

AOTA Approved Provider, ASHA CE Approved Provider, IBLCE Long-Term Provider

HERE'S WHAT'S INSIDE

RECORDED VIDEO Lessons
PDF Downloads
Recources

DROP THE ORAL EXERCISE PROTOCOL. USE your CLINICAL REASONING AND CHASE THE "WHY".

OT, SLP, PT ENROLL HERE
IBCLC ENROLL HERE

Course Instructors

 

Kimberly Grenawitzke, OTD, OTR/L, SCFES, IBCLC, CNT

Kim specializes in infant and pediatric feeding, eating, and swallowing, Kim has spent the majority of her career in pediatric acute care at some of the largest children’s hospitals on the west coast including Children's Hospital Los Angeles and Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford. For the last 10+ years, her clinical focus has been neonatal (NICU) feeding and swallowing, breastfeeding with high-risk infants, and infant/pediatric cardiac rehabilitation. In addition to her hospital-based work, Kim counsels families struggling with breastfeeding, transitioning to solids, selective/picky eating, tube weaning, and oral motor/chewing. Along with achieving and maintaining AOTA specialty certification in feeding, eating, and swallowing, she is a certified neonatal therapist and international board certified lactation consultant. She has spoken locally and nationally on the topics of pediatric feeding and swallowing, and is now a part of the senior team at Solid Starts, LLC. Kim is the co-founder and co-owner of Feeders and Growers, a business dedicated to providing education and training for medical professionals on pediatric feeding, eating and swallowing assessment and intervention. 

Kary Rappaport, MS, OTR/L, SCFES, IBCLC

Kary is a pediatric occupational therapist with 16 years of experience working with infants, children, and families who have feeding, eating and swallowing difficulties. Along with achieving and maintaining AOTA specialty certification in feeding, eating, and swallowing, Kary is a board certified lactation consultant. She specializes in dysphagia in the breastfed infant, breastfeeding challenges, the transition to solids, oral motor skill acquisition, Modified Barium Swallow Studies, picky eating, feeding aversion, and family mealtime dynamics. She has extensive experience in a wide variety of unique and complementary clinical settings, including neonatal and pediatric acute care, private practice, and birth to 5 Well Child Care (primary care and dental visits). In her most recent role within pediatric primary care, Kary supported a team of doctors and dentists with screening and intervention for at-risk families experiencing feeding, developmental, behavioral, and social-emotional challenges. In this role Kary also gained experience with grant writing and program development. She is now a part of the senior team at Solid Starts, LLC. Kary is the co-founder and co-owner of Feeders and Growers, a business dedicated to providing education and training for medical professionals on pediatric feeding, eating and swallowing assessment and intervention.  She has been published on the topic of feeding, presented at several national conferences--including most recently at the American Public Health Association’s national conference in 2021--and she lectures about feeding locally and nationally.

Let's Look Inside the Course

Don’t feel rushed! This is a self-paced, online continuing education course. You can pause, replay, and watch the videos as many times as you’d like as you expand your understanding of oral motor skills and their impact on infant feeding, breastfeeding, and function.

Module one: 6 minutes

Introduction

 

The course starts with a brief introduction of disclosures and an overview.

Module two: 2 hours

Infant Oral Motor Foundations & Nuances

  • Oral Reflexes 
  • Anatomy and relevant physiology
  • Oral motor skills for breast and bottle feeding 
  • Whole baby considerations: impact of body systems on oral motor skills 
Module three: 2 hours 10 minutes

Infant Oral Motor Assessment 


This section includes a step-by-step walkthrough of a custom infant feeding intake and evaluation form. Videos include a demonstration of assessment as well as feeding at breast vs bottle.

Module four: 2 hours 25 minutes

Oral Motor Adaptations & Remediation

  • Adaptations for successful breastfeeding and bottle-feeding (including review of bottles, nipples, and considerations for flow) 
  • Remediation strategies to improve oral motor skills required for breast and bottle feeding including differential diagnosis with potential treatment ideas
Module five: 40 minutes

Clinical Case Study


The course concludes with an in-depth case study of a NICU graduate who is breast and bottle-fed. Videos include oral motor interventions and strategies for the dysregulated infant.

MORE AWESOME REVIEWS

"I loved that Kary and Kim went into so much detail with their clinical experience as well as evidenced-based practice and very much appreciated their expertise and passion in this area. I really appreciated the referencing/reviewing of the material throughout the course in order to improve learning and carryover. Kary and Kim are an absolute joy to learn from and I would highly recommend their course!"

Physical Therapist

"The way the information was provided was easily to be digested. Video examples helped allow this information to be used in own treatment. The presenters were engaging. I was obsessed with the course! I've taken SOS/BECKMAN/FEED THE PEDS/MYO/TOTS and this by far is my most favorite! Excited to use the tools and information to help my babies!"

Speech langauge pathologist

This course encouraged problem solving and clinical reasoning, rather than just listing interventions for different oral motor conditions. I appreciated that it encouraged active engagement, and the information was very applicable to the families I currently serve.

Occupational Therapist

"This course was incredibly comprehensive! I was seeking a course that provided in-depth knowledge on the assessment and treatment of infant feeding. This was it! Kim and Kary are exceptional therapists and provided a wealth of invaluable information. I feel highly equipped to dig deep into answering the "why" and getting to the root cause of infant feeding impairment as it relates to Oral Motor skills. I highly recommend this course to any OT, SLP, PT professional who works with infants!"

Speech langauge pathologist

"I loved the presenters' emphasis on looking at the WHOLE infant instead of just oral motor skills, as well as their commitment to looking through research to inform their treatment approaches. It was a very thorough course and I learned SO much."

Occupational Therapist

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is this oral motor course intended for?

This oral motor course is designed for Occupational Therapy practitioners (OT and COTA), Speech-Language Pathologists (SLP), and Physical Therapy practitioners (PT and PTA). Therapists who are interested in a comprehensive, infant-specific course that offers a whole baby approach to oral motor skills required for breastfeeding and bottle feeding. This course is also appropriate for International Board Certified Lactation Consultants (IBCLCs), Dentists (DMD, DDS), Chiropractors (DC), and other healthcare professionals interested in learning more about infant oral motor skills.

 

What makes this course different from other oral motor or feeding courses?

Most oral motor CEU courses for occupational therapists, speech-language pathologists, and physical therapists focus on the entire lifespan. Courses that do focus on general pediatric oral motor skills barely cover infants or take into consideration breastfeeding (usually focused on bottle feeding). This course is infant-specific and covers oral motor assessment and intervention.

This course offers the unique perspective of using oral stimulation, remediation, and adaptation within the context of infant feeding and the impact of the family dynamic.

This comprehensive course is taught by experienced therapists, Occupational Therapists (OT) who are also International Board Certified Lactation Consultants (IBCLC), for therapists.

 

Are there prerequisites for this course?

Beyond the professional licensure, there is no required coursework needed prior to enrolling in this course.

 

As a therapist, can I count this course toward my 90 hours of lactation-specific education?

Absolutely! This course is approved for 7 L-CERPs. To receive credit for completion, the course must be completed with 100% watch time and each participant will need to complete a post-assessment with a passing score of at least 80% to ensure all learning objectives are met.

 

Information about AOTA CEUs

This course is approved for 0.7 AOTA CEUs. Participants will be required to:

  • Complete the course in its entirety (100% of the course watched)
  • Complete a multiple-choice post-assessment with a passing score of at least 80% (untimed test)
 

Information about ASHA CEUs

To receive ASHA CEUs, participants will be required to:

  •  Ensure you are eligible to receive ASHA CEUs! Click here for more information
  • Complete the course in its entirety (watch time is tracked by the learning management system) 
  • Complete the multiple-choice post-assessment with a passing score of at least 80% (untimed test, 3 retakes)
  • There is no option for partial credit
 

Information for Physical Therapists about PT CEUs

APTA does not approve individual companies and you will need to check with your individual state for online course requirements. To best prepare you can save the following:

  • The certificate of completion that will be provided
  • List of references
  • A copy of the assessment questions
 

How long will I have access to the course?

6 months from the purchase date. 

 

What is your refund/cancellation policy?

Refunds must be requested within 14 days of purchase by emailing [email protected]. A full refund is available if no modules have been started. A partial refund is available once ANY portion of the course has been viewed. The amount refunded is at the sole discretion of The Lactation OT LLC. There is no refund available after 14 days of purchase OR if module one has been completed. Recipients will receive acknowledgment of refund requests within 3 business days. If the request is valid per the terms listed above, the refund will be processed within 7 business days. If for any reason the course is canceled by The Lactation OT before the course is started, a full refund will be provided. 

 

How do I request special accommodation?

Please send us an email at [email protected] at least 14 days before starting the course with further details of your request.

IBLCE Long-Term Provider

7.0 L-CERPs

Ready to get started?

OT, SLP, PT ENROLL HERE
IBCLC ENROLL HERE