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SwallowStudy.com
Karen Sheffler graduated from University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1995 and obtained Board Certification as a Specialist in Swallowing and Swallowing Disorders (BCS-S) in August 2012. She founded SwallowStudy.com in 2014 as a dysphagia resource for professionals and people with dysphagia. She is an 8-time recipient of ASHA's Award for Continuing Education. In 2019, she received the Hormel Health Lab's Health Hero Award. In 2021, she was awarded the Kalynn Quinn Hensely Head & Neck Laryngology Lectureship.
Financial Disclosure:
•Yes, Paid Consultant, Royalty recipient, Paid Formal advisor (review panels, scientific boards, board membership), Speaker fee (honorarium, stipend, other)
•1. Royalties/affiliate membership: My website (SwallowStudy.com) has minimal affiliate relationships, where I make a small percentage on sales: MedbridgeEducation (affiliate relationship & course instructor commission) & CWI Medical (seller of healthcare products, including thickeners). 2. Paid Consultant: Hormel Health Labs Dysphagia Consultant and paid contributor to blog writings for their website. 3. Formal paid advisor: I sit on the Hormel Health Labs Advisory Council for research and development. 4. Received small honorariums for writings and lectures from multiple organizations, industry partners and education platforms. Those that may relate to this course: a. Summit Education: I have a course on Drugs & Dysphagia, where I receive royalties. This does NOT mention pill dysphagia. b. Honorarium ($500) from Aprecia & Prasco Pharmaceuticals, LLC (3D Printed Pharmaceutical companies) for a talk on Pill Dysphagia at their "How Pharmaceutical 3DP Technologies are Overcoming Formulation Challenges" seminar. c. Honorarium from Arkray, Inc (makers of Phazix pill swallowing gel) on pill dysphagia for a small group of customers ($500). NOTE: I do not receive any commissions on sales of products from these companies. d. Honorarium from DysphagiaCafe for May 2022 talk on Instrumental evaluations where the clinician suspects that the person has a "normal" swallow, and I will mention making sure to assess for pill dysphagia. Key points of talk are addressing muscle tension dysphagia and the need for a thorough instrumental exam, interview and counseling/education/referrals. This proposed ASHA 2022 talk on pill dysphagia will go into much more depth on the topic. My website www.swallowstudy.com has a link to my CV that states all relationships and lectures, and will be the most up to date resource by fall 2022.
Non-financial Disclosures:
•Yes, Volunteer teaching or speaking, Volunteer consulting
•Member of Dysphagia Research Society, SIG13, National Foundation of Swallowing Disorders (NFOSD). Co-chair of the Public Relations & Communications Committee for the American Board of Swallowing and Swallowing Disorders (AB-SSD). Member of IDDSI's United States IDDSI Reference Group (USIRG) in work groups: "Communication & Advocacy" and "Resources & Best Practice." Member of the leadership board for the IDDSI Reference Groups nationally and internationally.
These disclosures apply to all presentations listed below.