Who do we treat? The children we treat range in age from 12 months to 16 years old and possess a wide range of complex medical and developmental histories.

Where does therapy occur? This is where we find what works for you. We aim to start sessions in our clinic, as this yields the best results then transitioning back into the home where mealtimes naturally occur.

What’s the first step? Once you have engaged West Coast Feeding and Behaviour Specialists, our initial goal is to conduct a comprehensive assessment process.

We begin by gathering information about: Your child’s past and current eating patterns (e.g. feeding history, mealtime habits, daily meal schedule). Your perspective on how the feeding problems developed (e.g. illness, surgery, allergic reaction). The approaches you currently use in an effort to get your child to eat. We also review reports from other allied health professionals.

Next we observe your child’s behaviour during meals and their response when presented with a novel food item. Lastly, we evaluate potential reinforcers (i.e. preferred activities, toys, foods) to be used as part of your child’s feeding therapy.

Guided by the information gathered from the comprehensive assessment, your West Coast Feeding team will collaborate with your family and your other health professionals to develop a feeding therapy plan that will guide us to reach your family’s

Now we implement the plan. There are four phases to implementation:

Intensive therapy with the feeding therapist: In this phase the feeding therapist, under the supervision of Dr. Binnendyk, works directly with your child in a non-meal-time context. The feeding therapist’s goal is to teach your child to consume a wide variety of foods.

Initial Training and Support with Parents: In this phase the parents learn the techniques that the feeding therapist has been using to successfully encourage your child to eat. Techniques are brought into a meal-time routine.

Maintenance Support: During this phase, your feeding therapist will continue to support you to increase your confidence in expanding and modifying the strategies you learned in phase 2. Contact will occur every 2-3 weeks.

Follow-up Support: During follow-up, your feeding team fades contact and support to your family to once every three to six months. During this time, you are encouraged to call your Consultant or Feeding Therapist when problems re-emerge or new issues arise and you are not able to solve these problems on your own.

How do we know if the plan is working? We use multiple methods of evaluation to assess the outcomes of the behavioural feeding intervention. These methods are designed to answer three central questions: Has the plan promoted meaningful and durable behaviour change for your child? Do the parents and other stakeholders use the behavioural support procedures effectively? Do family members perceive plan goals, procedures, and outcomes as acceptable, effective, and feasible?

What do children with feeding disorders need?

Children with feeding disorders need a planned, incremental program to build their eating skills and meal-time confidence. Behaviour Analysis provides a structured approach that will: Improve your child’s eating behaviour. Promote your child’s successful participation in a meal routine Empower you and other family members to successfully support your child

What types of feeding problems can be addressed with feeding therapy?

We help children with a variety of feeding problems, including: Consumes a limited range of foods. Diagnosis of Avoidance/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID). Fear of eating after a choking or vomiting incident. Gastrostomy (g-tube) or naso-gastric (ng-tube) dependence. Oral motor delay or inability to chew (failure to transition from pureed to table foods). Bottle dependence. Dependence on oral nutritional supplements (e.g., Pediasure). Vomits or gags when eating. Tantrums at mealtimes. Unable to self-feed. Refusal to drink fluids.