Dysphagia Training Course

Dysphagia Training Course

This Dysphagia Training Course is for care workers, support staff, and health and social care professionals who support people with swallowing problems. The course helps you understand what causes dysphagia, the signs to look out for, and the risks, like choking or food going down the wrong way (aspiration). You will learn safe ways to help people eat and drink, how to keep them healthy, and how to give care that respects their needs and dignity.

Dysphagia, or difficulty swallowing, is a common disorder that can lead to serious health complications if left undiagnosed or untreated. This dysphagia training provides essential training to help identify, assess, and manage dysphagia appropriately. Dysphagia awareness is important to help people suffering from the condition.

Around 1 in 17 people have swallowing problems (dysphagia) at some point in their lives. It is common in people with conditions like stroke, dementia, or brain disorders. About 70% of care home residents need help with dysphagia, so this training is very important. The course follows rules from the Care Quality Commission (CQC), NICE guidelines, and the Care Act 2014.

It can also help you get a job in health and social care – a field with 1.54 million workers and a need for 500,000 more by 2035. Below is a simple guide to job roles linked to this half-day course.

Ideal for care home, hospital, and home care staff, this training helps keep people safe and improves their quality of life.

Course Information:

• Course Duration: 2- 3 hours
• Course Level: Level 2
• Certificate: 2-year certificate
• Max Delegates: 12
• Practical: No
• Mode: Face-to-Face/Online (Virtual)
• Prerequisite: None

Course Outline: Dysphagia Training

Dysphagia Awareness Training – Course Outline

1. What is Dysphagia?

• Learn what dysphagia means.
• Understand what causes it and how to spot the signs.
• Talk about what can go wrong, like choking or food going into the lungs.

2. How Dysphagia Affects People

• Talk about how swallowing problems affect the body.
• Understand how it can make people feel sad, worried, or lonely.
• Learn why eating and drinking safely is important for a good life.

3. Who Is at Risk?

• Learn who is more likely to have dysphagia (e.g., people with stroke or dementia).
• Understand how to spot people who may be at risk.

4. Watching and Reporting

• Learn how to check for signs of dysphagia.
• Know what to look out for and when to tell a manager or a nurse.
• Understand how to write down what you see (reporting and recording).

5. Helping People with Dysphagia

• Learn how to support someone with swallowing problems.
• Talk about food and drink changes (like soft or blended food).
• Understand ways to keep people safe while eating and drinking.

6. Safe Feeding Techniques

• Learn the right way to help someone eat and drink safely.
• Practise safe sitting positions and slow feeding techniques.
• Understand how to stop choking and what to do in emergencies.

7. Working as a Team

• Understand the role of different people (like nurses, speech therapists, and care workers).
• Learn how to work together and share information to help the person.

This course helps care workers give better, safer support to people with swallowing problems, in line with care standards. Let me know if you’d like a printable version or to add learning goals or timings!

Learning Outcomes

After completing the Level 2 Dysphagia Course, you will be able to:

1. Say what dysphagia is, what causes it, and the common signs to look for.
2. Explain how dysphagia can affect a person’s body, feelings, and social life.
3. Know who is at risk of dysphagia and how to spot signs in people you support.
4. Check for swallowing problems, keep good notes, and report them at the right time.
5. Use simple ways to help, like changing food textures, using safe swallowing methods, and asking for help from professionals like speech and language therapists.
6. Show how to feed someone safely to stop choking or food going the wrong way.
7. Understand how different care staff work together to help someone with dysphagia, and know how to be part of that team.

Dysphagia training follows IDDSI, CQC standards, and the Skills for Care Competency Framework, ensuring safe, evidence-based, and person-centred swallowing care.

Who Should Take This Dysphagia Training:

People who should take the Dysphagia Awareness Training Course:

• Care assistants
• Support workers
• Healthcare assistants (HCAs)
• Nurses
• Social care workers
• Staff in care homes
• Domiciliary (home care) workers
• Hospital staff working with older or vulnerable patients
• Community care workers
• Speech and language therapy assistants
• New staff working with people who have swallowing problems
• Anyone helping with meals or feeding in health or social care settings

This course is useful for anyone who supports people with eating, drinking, or swallowing difficulties.

Onsite Dysphagia Training Course

Caring for Care’s Onsite Dysphagia Training offers practical, face-to-face learning for teams supporting people with swallowing difficulties. This Level 2 course takes place at your location and covers the causes, signs, and risks like choking and malnutrition. Staff learn how to spot warning signs, use safe feeding techniques, and work with other care professionals.

The training includes practical guidance and follows the IDDSI guidelines for food and drink textures. Onsite delivery allows trainers to give immediate feedback and build team confidence. This is ideal for care homes, hospitals, and supported living.

Our trainers visit many UK cities, including London, Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow, Cardiff, Newcastle, York, Swindon, and Stoke-on-Trent.

Benefits of our in-house training include tailored content, team-wide consistency, and reduced travel disruption. Staff learn together in a familiar setting, boosting confidence in managing swallowing difficulties and applying safe feeding techniques.

Courses that pair well with onsite Dysphagia Training include Nutrition & Hydration, Medication Awareness, Dementia Care, and Safeguarding, enhancing safe, person-centred support for swallowing difficulties. Overall, this supports CQC compliance, improves nutritional safety, and promotes dignity in care.

Benefits of Taking Our Dysphagia Course

Key Benefits of Trainer-Led Dysphagia Training:

1. Better Care for People

• Learn how to help people with swallowing problems eat and drink safely.
• Helps keep people comfortable and treated with respect, as the Care Act 2014 says.
• Good dysphagia care makes life better – 80% of people feel better with the right help.

2. Follows Care Rules

• Helps you follow CQC and NICE rules.
• Stops problems that can lead to fines – 1 in 5 care places have been fined for poor care.
• Shows you care about doing your job properly and helps with CQC checks.

3. Makes You More Confident

• Learn to spot the signs of dysphagia and feed people safely.
• Know when to ask a therapist for help.
• Be ready to support people with stroke or dementia who have swallowing problems.
• Practice with real-life examples so you feel sure of what to do.

4. Keeps People Safer

• Learn how to stop choking or chest infections, which happen in 1 in 5 dysphagia cases.
• Helps prevent mistakes like wrong feeding – a cause of many care home health issues.

5. Helps You Get Jobs

• You get a training certificate to add to your CV.
• Good for jobs in care homes, hospitals, or home care.
• Makes it easier to move up to jobs like senior care worker or team leader.

6. Works in Real Care Jobs

• Teaches useful skills like using soft food or helping someone sit properly to eat.
• Fits well with other training like Safeguarding or Dementia Awareness.

7. Improves Teamwork

• Everyone in your team learns to use the same safe methods.
• Makes it easier to work well with nurses, therapists, and managers.

8. Saves Money for Care Providers

• Helps avoid mistakes that lead to complaints, accidents, or fines over £20,000.
• Makes care homes or hospitals look better and helps bring in more clients and staff.

Who Benefits Most?

• Care Assistants and Healthcare Assistants: Learn safe ways to help with meals, especially for people with stroke or dementia.
• Community Care Workers: Use these skills when helping people in their own homes.
• Team Leaders: Support your team to give safe and kind care that meets all rules.
• New Starters: A great way to begin a care job, even with no experience.

Helpful Blog post: Find answers to the reasons choking is more common in care homes

Customer Testimonials

See how our Dysphagia course has helped businesses like yours stay safer and reduce risks. It’s rated ‘Excellent’ by customers on Google, Trustpilot, and Reviews.io! We received thousands of positive reviews every day on our courses and we have a 99% recommendation rate.

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“John Starr gave a well-explained training on dysphagia. It was a fantastic presentation.” – Matcha

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“Ben Trained us on Dysphagia, I learned a lot from this course. It will definitely help me to understand this topic in future. Thank you.” – Carla B.

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“Gained helpful awareness about dysphagia, which is useful for me as an HCA. Great presentation by Mr Ben! 👌” – Meenu

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“The dysphagia training delivered to us received fantastic feedback from attendees — they said it was the best training they had ever had! This training was arranged for us at very short notice to help support a vulnerable adult in the right and safe way. It has made a big difference to this person’s care and safety. Thank you!” – Caroline Huntley

Frequently Asked Questions

How would this course benefit organisation and individuals?

This course helps organisations deliver safer, more dignified care by equipping staff with practical skills in managing eating, drinking, and swallowing needs. It reduces risk, supports compliance, and boosts confidence in frontline teams.

For individuals, it enhances understanding of dysphagia, promotes person-centred support, and improves outcomes for those with complex health conditions, especially in neurological or dementia care settings.

What courses can be paired with this course?

You could pair this Eating, Drinking, Swallowing (Dysphagia) Training with Dementia Care, Neurological Conditions, and Nutrition & Hydration to deepen understanding of complex needs.

Add Basic Life Support, Mental Capacity, and Safeguarding to strengthen emergency response, ethical decision-making, and risk awareness across care settings.

How is the course related to SLT?

This course complements the work of Speech and Language Therapists (SLTs) by helping care staff understand and support individuals with eating, drinking, and swallowing difficulties.

It reinforces SLT-led care plans, promotes safer mealtime practices, and improves communication between teams, ensuring consistent, person-centred support for those with dysphagia or complex needs across care and clinical settings.

Is dysphagia awareness training the same as eat, drinking and swallowing disorder course?

Yes, Dysphagia awareness training and Eating, Drinking and Swallowing (EDS) disorder courses are essentially the same thing, with “Eating, Drinking and Swallowing” being a broader, more modern term that includes dysphagia, a difficulty in these processes.

Usually, dysphagia awareness only focuses  causes, signs, risks (like choking or aspiration), and how to support individuals with swallowing difficulties while EDS covers practical mealtime support, modified diets, hydration, emotional wellbeing, and dignity in care.

The purpose of these courses is to educate people, particularly carers and non-specialist professionals, on how to recognise, support, and manage the risks associated with eating and drinking difficulties, commonly known as dysphagia.

At Caring for Care, we tailor both courses to fit the needs of the caregiver and the individual receiving support—ensuring safer, more dignified mealtimes and clearer understanding of swallowing challenges. Our training empowers staff while protecting the wellbeing of those living with complex conditions.

When Should I refresh the dysphagia course?

You should refresh your Eating, Drinking and Swallowing (Dysphagia) Training every 12–18 months, or sooner if your role changes, new risks arise, or guidelines are updated.

Regular refreshers help maintain safe, confident care and ensure staff stay aligned with best practice and CQC expectations.

How important is dysphagia awareness?

Dysphagia awareness is critical—over 4 million people in the UK are affected, with up to 75% of care home residents experiencing swallowing difficulties.

Without proper support, risks include malnutrition, aspiration pneumonia, and choking-related fatalities, which occur more frequently than deaths from food allergies.

Raising awareness and training staff can reduce choking incidents by up to 85%, improving safety, dignity, and quality of life for vulnerable individuals.

At Caring for Care, we deliver Dysphagia Awareness Training both face-to-face and virtually—giving you flexibility to suit your team’s needs. Whether in-person or online, our sessions are interactive, practical, and tailored to your care setting. We ensure staff gain the confidence and skills to support safer, more dignified mealtimes.