5 September 2024
Yesterday (4 September), the RCSLT and Wiltshire Farm Foods hosted our first dedicated dining experience for people with eating, drinking and swallowing difficulties.
The event, held at Kapara Soho, London, gave people with dysphagia a rare opportunity to enjoy a textured modified meal out whilst socialising with loved ones, friends, and carers. Diners were able to pick their lunchtime meal from a menu which included a variety of puréed meals prepared by Wiltshire Farm Foods’ chefs Phil Rimmer and Jethro Lawrence.
Guests included 99-year-old, Olivia Shephard who said: “This pop-up is a fantastic idea. To be invited to an event of this kind is such a treat as I never eat out anymore and it’s been invaluable for me to understand more about the fantastic work that speech and language therapists and Wiltshire Farm Foods are doing to help those with dysphagia.”
RCSLT President Nick Hewer, who joined the diners at Kapara, said: “Dysphagia affects people of all ages and speech and language therapists play a key role in identifying and managing the condition. Swallowing difficulties often occur with other health issues such as dementia, stroke, and head and neck cancer. They can affect a person’s quality of life, including their ability to socialise with others.
So many of our daily interactions with friends and family revolve around food and drink and this can be challenging for people with Dysphagia. That’s why today’s event is so special.”
