When the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND) released their annual update to the Nutrition Care Manual™ (NCM™) in November 2020, it contained a change to dysphagia diets that will have a significant impact before the end of 2021 – the end of support for the National Dysphagia Diet. The full text of the announcement is included here:
Full NCM® Transition to IDDSI Framework by October 2021
The International Dysphagia Diet Standardization Initiative (IDDSI) created global standardized terminology and definitions for texture-modified foods and thickened liquids to improve the safety and care for individuals with dysphagia, a swallowing disorder, which affects an estimated 560 million people worldwide. The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association jointly supported May 1, 2019 as the official launch date for IDDSI implementation in the United States.
It is imperative that all healthcare providers globally implement IDDSI, both to ensure patient safety and to maintain current standards of practice. The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics is pleased to announce beginning October 2021, IDDSI will be the only texture-modified diet recognized by NCM®. The National Dysphagia Diet (NDD) and associated resources will no longer be included in the NCM® past October 2021.
As surprising as the announcement will be to many people, the AND had endorsed IDDSI several years ago. This is just the final step in the transition.
At SimplyThick, we are ready for this change. SimplyThick has been an early adopter of IDDSI. Three years ago, in February 2018, we became the first US company to redesign all of our packaging with IDDSI colors and terminology. To make this happen, we started work in 2016. We have been a proud financial supporter of IDDSI for many years. Since we saw the first presentation of IDDSI, we have been on board. The tools and the skills and test methods all just make so much sense.
At SimplyThick we live and breathe IDDSI, and we know IDDSI inside and out. Over the last year, we have used our “time at home” to hone our IDDSI skills.
We have offered monthly webinars about IDDSI and IDDSI implementation. Through these events, we have trained over 1500 people about IDDSI and IDDSI implementation in acute care and long-term care settings.
We developed a Pureed (L4) and/or Minced & Moist (L5) bread recipe that is easy, simple, and tastes amazing! This is in the final stages of beta testing across the country. We expect to release the recipe in the next couple of months.
We are in the final stages of publishing a book to educate home users on cooking meals for IDDSI compliance. It will be available before the end of the year.
We are ready for this change. We believe we have become experts. And we are here to help you! Let us know what we can do for you during your journey to IDDSI!