Self-Study: The Evolving Swallow: Managing the Effects of Surgery, Chemo, and Radiation (3919)

Patheous Health Imaging and Patheous Health Education officially closes on March 31, 2026. Any learner who satisfactorily completes a self-study course by midnight EST on March 31st, with the intention to earn ASHA CEUs, will be reported to the ASHA CE Registry. It is our understanding that educational content will still be available after March 31st until August 1st. Self-study courses completed after March 31st will not be reported to the ASHA CE Registry. Learners will obtain a certificate of completion verifying the number of Professional Development Hours (PDHs) earned. Documentation should be kept and tracked by the learner.

Course Description

For SLPs who treat head and neck cancer patients, treating dysphagia is often an evolutionary battle that starts before patients undergo cancer treatment and persists long after patients have received their final cancer treatments. The clinician’s greatest challenge is understanding, preparing the patient for, and addressing the cancer treatment’s extensive list of short and long-term effects on the patient’s swallow function. This two-hour webinar will highlight the most current, evidence-based practices for providing effective, patient-centered dysphagia interventions in the head and neck cancer patient population.


Learning Objectives

  • Interpret pertinent cancer treatment information during medical chart review.
  • Describe Radiation Fibrosis Syndrome, how it differs from fibrotic scars, and the rehabilitation principles for treating a radiation-induced dysphagia patient.
  • List clinical swallowing assessment tools and resources appropriate for head and neck cancer patients.
  • Identify dysphagia interventions for head and neck cancer patients most supported by current research in the field of SLP and cancer rehabilitation.
  • List appropriate multi-disciplinary referrals relevant to function and quality of life for head and neck cancer patients with dysphagia based on the latest American Cancer Society Head and Neck Cancer Survivorship Care Guidelines.


Agenda

  • 00:00-00:20    The Importance of the HNC Patient Medical Chart Review
  • 00:20-00:50    Radiation Fibrosis Syndrome’s Impact on Dysphagia Rehabilitation 
  • 00:50-01:10     Assessing the HNC Patient’s Swallow Function
  • 01:10-01:30    “Evidence-based” HNC Dysphagia Interventions 
  • 01:30-01:45    The “Whole-System Approach” to HNC Patients 
  • 01:45-02:00    Summary and Post-Test


Webinar Notice

Successful participation in this course includes completion of the post-test with a score of 80% or higher, then participants will automatically receive a course completion certificate. 

This course is offered for 2.0 Professional Development Hours. 


Refund Policy 

No refunds for self-study courses.

If you have any questions, please email [email protected] or call 877-390-1887.

Instructor

Megan Nosol, M.S.Ed., M.S., PA-S1 Megan Nosol

Megan is a former medical-based Speech-Language Pathologist who holds a master’s degree in Speech and Hearing Sciences from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Upon graduation from UNC's program in 2013, Megan worked as a clinician in the skilled nursing, outpatient rehabilitation, non-profit organization, and telepractice settings from 2014-2020. Her main areas of interest were head and neck cancer, neurorehabilitation, and counseling. With her additional master’s degree in Secondary Education, Megan uses her passion for teaching to instruct webinars and courses for SLPs, such as "The ARK-J Program Trismus Intervention Certification Course", “The Evolving Swallow: Managing the Effects of Chemo, Radiation, and Surgery” webinar, and "Filling in the Gaps: Missing Components of Dysphagia Education" course with Ed Bice, M.A. CCC-SLP. She enjoys helping others learn and found mentoring new clinicians one of the most rewarding aspects of her job as a clinician. You can listen to Megan's podcast episodes on Swallow Your Pride to learn more about important considerations when treating HNC patients (episode 8) or read about trismus intervention or using Motivational Interviewing as a counseling approach with dysphagia patients in Megan's blog posts on Dysphagia Cafe. Currently, Megan is a Physician Assistant student (graduating class of 2024) at Quinnipiac University in North Haven, Connecticut. Disclosures: Megan will receive an honorarium for this course from Patheous Health. Megan has the following non-financial relationship to disclose: Megan is a board member of the Burgundy & White non-profit organization.