Critical Review of Online Resources Frequently Used by Certified Speech-Language Pathologists for Dysphagia Management

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify the online resources that are frequently used by certified speech-language pathologists (SLPs) for dysphagia management and to evaluate these online resources against a standardized critical review metric. Method: Certified SLPs were surveyed and asked to describe their familiarity and confidence in critically reviewing online resources and to provide three online resources that they use to inform them about their management of patients with swallowing disorders. Three raters independently judged each online resource that was provided by survey respondents using the DISCERN Instrument. Relationships between respondent demographics and characteristics of online resources were explored. Results: Our results revealed that no patterns in DISCERN Instrument ratings for online resources were provided by the 48 respondents. There was no difference in who was more or less likely to choose credible online resources for dysphagia management when considering respondents' characteristics and familiarity and confidence in reviewing online resources. Most of the online resources provided by the respondents lacked a high level of reliability for most of the DISCERN Instrument review criteria. Conclusion: Professional training in the critical review of online resources used for managing dysphagia is needed across all levels of training.