Intensive Day-Treatment Feeding Evaluation
The Intensive Day-Treatment program is for children with severe feeding disorders:
- who have had at least three months of outpatient feeding therapy and have not made progress or
- whose feeding disorder is causing medical emergencies (e.g., dehydration, tube placement).
What do I need to know to prepare for the Intensive Day-Treatment Feeding Evaluation?
Where do I go for the Intensive Day-Treatment Feeding Evaluation?
- Somerset Site, located at 888 Easton Ave. Somerset, NJ 08873
Do I need to fill out forms?
- Yes. You can click here (English or Spanish) to access an online screener. Please answer all questions in this screener and click “submit” at the bottom of the screener to initiate the process. Our Feeding Intake Coordinator will send other paperwork once the screener has been completed and submitted.
How do I prepare for the evaluation?
- Your child should be at least a little hungry before coming to the evaluation. We suggest no oral or tube feeding for two hours before the evaluation if possible. If this is not possible, try to limit the food to a light snack. Water is fine.
-
Please bring at least one preferred and one non-preferred food, and at
least one liquid to the evaluation.
- Please also bring the utensils, cups, plates, and anything you use at mealtime such as toys or a tablet, or to help your child wait (e.g., while we meet with you to discuss our recommendations).
|
Food or Drink Type |
Definition |
Examples |
|
2 Preferred foods |
A food your child eats every time you serve it |
If possible, try to bring a variety of textures (e.g., a food your child has to chew, like chicken nugget; a food your child does not have to chew, like yogurt) |
|
2 Challenging foods |
A food you want your child to eat but your child will not eat it |
If possible, try to bring a variety of textures (e.g., a food your child has to chew, like chicken nugget; a food your child does not have to chew, like yogurt) |
|
A drink |
Any drink you serve at home |
Milk, juice |
|
Specialty products |
Anything you add to your child’s foods or drinks |
Thickener, butter, rice cereal |
Do I need to bring anything else?
- Current photo id (e.g., driver’s license)
- Insurance card
- Notepad; you may want to write down your questions
Should I bring my other children to the evaluation?
- We want you to be able to focus on the evaluation. We suggest that you do not bring other children. If this is not possible, try to bring someone to watch your other children during the evaluation.
What will happen during the evaluation?
- Our feeding experts will welcome you and your child. You and your child will be a member of our team. As a team, we will work together to assess your child’s unique needs, to identify your child’s feeding strengths and challenges, and to see if the intensive program will be a good fit for you and your child.
- Our feeding experts will review the information from the forms you filled out and sent us. We ask for your patience because our feeding experts may need to gather more detailed information based on the questions you already answered on the form.
- Our feeding experts want to see what mealtime is like. We understand that your child may not eat much by mouth and that is ok. They will ask you to feed your child the foods and drink you brought. They also will ask you to feed your child a few other foods that they will prepare at the clinic. Our feeding experts may watch from an observation room so the mealtime observation will be more natural for you and your child.
- You will have time to ask questions. Our feeding experts will discuss their recommendations with you. They also will give you a written summary of the recommendations.
How long will the evaluation take?
- Evaluations usually take about 2 hours.
When will I get the results of the evaluation?
- Our feeding experts will review their recommendations with you at the end of the evaluation appointment.
What happens after the evaluation?
-
Whatever you and our feeding experts decide, you can be sure that we will
be there to support you. Here are some examples of recommendations that
our feeding experts make after the evaluation:
- Treatment with our feeding experts.
-
Medical tests or evaluations.
- Some children need medical tests or evaluations to find out whether medical problems or conditions are causing or worsening their feeding disorder before moving forward. Our feeding experts will tell you which medical specialists they recommend (e.g., seeing an allergist or a pediatric gastroenterologist). They will ask you to follow-up with your primary care doctor to refer you to those specialists.
Will my insurance pay for the evaluation?
- Many insurance plans cover our services. We will start this process once your child meets initial criteria for an evaluation. Click here (English or Spanish) to find out whether the Intensive Day-Treatment Feeding Program is right for you and your child.
Return to Feeding Services Homepage
Need Help? Contact our Feeding Intake Coordinator, call 908-301-5915