Publication details
PILOTNÍ AKČNÍ VÝZKUM ZAMĚŘENÝ NA OPTIMALIZACI PRŮBĚHU FEES PROSTŘEDNICTVÍM PODPŮRNÝCH MATERIÁLŮ V KLINICKOLOGOPEDICKÉ PRAXI
| Title in English | Pilot Action Research Focused on Optimising the FEES Procedure through Support Materials in Clinical SpeecH-Language Pathology Practice |
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| Authors | |
| Year of publication | 2026 |
| Type | Peer-reviewed scientific article |
| Magazine / Source | LISTY KLINICKÉ LOGOPEDIE |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| web | https://casopis.aklcr.cz/pdfs/lkl/2026/01/07.pdf |
| Doi | https://doi.org/10.36833/lkl.2026.015 |
| Keywords | Dysphagia; FEES; flexible endoscopic evaluation of swallowing; patient education; clinical speech-language pathology; action research; support materials; |
| Description | Flexible endoscopic evaluation of swal lowing (FEES) is a standard instrumental method for diagnosing dysphagia in adult patients. With the growing prevalence of neurological, neurodegenerative and chronic diseases, particularly among older adults, there is an increasing need for diagnostic procedures that are not only clinically valid, but also organisationally efficient and understandable to the patient. The effectiveness of FEES is significantly influenced by the patient’s level of aware ness, their cooperation, and the organisa tion of the diagnostic process. The aim of the study was to optimise the FEES process through the creation and pilot testing of support materials in clin ical speech-language pathology practice. The study was conducted using action re search methodology at the Department of Clinical Speech-Language Pathology at St. Anne’s University Hospital in Brno. During the diagnostic phase, direct obser vation of eight FEES examinations was per formed, based on which three problematic areas were identified: insufficient patient education, the absence of a structured med ical history, and inconsistent documen tation of the examination. Based on these findings, three tools were developed: an educational leaflet, a standardised FEES re cord sheet, and a questionnaire on subjec tive swallowing difficulties. These tools were pilot-tested on four patients and iterative ly modified, based on feedback from both healthcare staff and patients. The results suggest that the implementa tion of purpose-built support materials can contribute to increase clarity of the diagnos tic process, to improve communication, and to better prepare the patient for the exam ination. Although the development of these materials was inspired by the needs of older hospitalised patients, their use appears to be broader, particularly among patients with neurogenic dysphagia. However, given the small sample size, these findings should be interpreted as preliminary and requiring further validation. |