User Profile
Who should use the Mealtime Partner Dining Device?
There is no
standard set of characteristics that determines whether or not an
individual can successfully use a Mealtime Partner.
The Partner is appropriate for feeding both disabled
children or disabled adults. For example, it can be a feeding aid for those with
cerebral palsy, facilitate assistive feeding for individuals with
SCI, used as a feeding aid for Parkinson’s patients, or be a feeding
aid for ALS patients.
The only absolute requirement is that the user has the
ability to move their head forward enough to remove food from the
spoon.
While the
considerations outlined below are not meant to preclude a potential
user from operation of the Partner, they are provided to
serve as general guidelines.
The
following areas should be evaluated relative to there applicability
to Mealtime Partner use:
seating/positioning; vision/hearing; oral motor skills; cognition;
and gross and fine motor control.
Seating/Positioning.
A user should be positioned to best utilize his/her body to
control one or two adaptive switches and have appropriate body
posture to facilitate food removal from the spoon, and oral motor
movement for eating. Also,
the user should be positioned so that they can comfortably watch the
device operate and see the various foods being served.
Oral Motor
Skills.
A formal feeding evaluation is recommended for all
users of the Partner. However, for individuals with oral
motor difficulties, it is essential. Individuals with no oral motor
difficulties can use the Partner most easily. People with neuromotor
disabilities such as cerebral palsy have more difficulty and might
need the assistance of an occupational therapist to learn how to
operate the device.
Eating/Swallowing. The user should be able to eat without any special procedures. The ability to eat normal food is a plus but texture modification works equally well. For high or low calorie diets, a formal feeding evaluation is recommended before deciding to use the Partner.
Vision/Hearing. The
user should be able to see the food selections and see the spoon as
it delivers food to them.
Cognition.
Persons with a variety of
cognitive abilities are appropriate candidates for using the
Partner. However, those
with lower cognitive skills may require training to use the device.
Gross
and Fine Motor Skills.
The users gross
and fine motor skills will control the number and placement of
adaptive switches used for controlling the Partner.
(For those who have little or no motor control, the
Partner can be operated in the fully automatic mode, requiring
no adaptive switches.)
People
who
should not use the
Mealtime Partner:
Respirator users and people who aspirate during meals (either
eating or drinking) should not use the Partner unless under
the direct recommendation of a Physician, and, even then, they
should never be left unattended while eating using the
device.
Those with a severe
bite reflex would have difficulty eating using the Partner as
their bite reflex could cause the device to be repositioned. The
Partner must maintain the correct alignment for continued
successful eating.
This page last updated on 12-13-2018.