In this episode of Swallow Your Pride, Dr. Amy Delaney—assistant professor at Marquette University and director of the Neurodevelopmental Feeding and Swallowing Lab—shares groundbreaking insights into pediatric feeding development. She discusses her recent scoping review on oral feeding skills, highlighting the critical gaps in normative data and the need for standardized clinical tools. Dr. Delaney also introduces the Developmental Texture Framework, a novel approach to understanding feeding skill progression using national dietary data from typically developing children.
With decades of clinical experience and a passion for interdisciplinary collaboration, Dr. Delaney reflects on her transition from clinician to researcher and the importance of early, evidence-based intervention for children with feeding challenges. Whether you’re a clinician, researcher, or caregiver, this episode offers a deep dive into the evolving science of pediatric feeding and the movement toward redefining feeding as a core developmental domain.
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Dr. Amy L. Delaney is an Assistant Professor in Speech-Pathology & Audiology at Marquette University. She is the Director of the Neurodevelopmental Feeding and Swallowing Lab focusing on the identification of a norm-reference for feeding development aligned with the diagnostic criteria for pediatric feeding disorder (PFD) and development of assessment tools for the early and accurate diagnosis. Recent publications of her research highlight preliminary data for feeding expectations in a development texture framework, texture progression, oral feeding skill assessment and bite acceptance. She recently was awarded an ASHFoundation Research Grant to support further standardization of feeding skill development. Dr. Delaney worked at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin for 20 years in advanced diagnostics and intervention of PFD and pediatric dysphagia in medically complex children. She is a Founding Medical Professional Council Member and outgoing Educational Pillar Chair for Feeding Matters. She co-authored the Infant and Child Feeding Questionnaire and PFD consensus paper by Goday et al in 2019.
