This is a simulated referral letter from a pediatrician at a children’s hospital to a Speech Language Pathologist in the same area. This child, Drake, is being seen and evaluated for pediatric dysphagia.
Dr. Kendall B. Shakman, M.D.
Women’s & Children’s Hospital, CAMC
800 Pennsylvania Ave. East Suite
Charleston, WV 25302
October 14, 2006
Whitney Hicks
1645 3rd Avenue
Hurricane, WV 25526
Ms. Hicks,
I have been under the pediatric supervision of Drake Christopher Ryken for the suspicion of a Pediatric Dysphagia disorder. Drake is a male patient who is at this time 2 months, 16 days of age. On October 8, 2006, Drake’s Father brought him back to the hospital with complaints of labored breathing and the child’s frequent refusal to eat (Texas Speech-Language-Hearing Association, [TSHA], 2005). According to Drake’s medical charts on the DLS, Drake has lost an abnormal amount of weight. According to record, Drake was born two months prematurely and has had a large amount of difficulty with feeding since birth. I am suggesting that a team be assembled to help assess Drake’s feeding and swallowing symptoms so an evaluation can take place. On October 10, 2006, Drake was given an informal swallowing eval. along with an attempted Modified Barium Swallow, but would not respond to taking any liquids at this time. The recommendations that have been made by the physicians at our facility include Drake receiving a feeding tube or another source of special equipment to aid the patient in effective swallowing and feeding (TSHA, 2005). These suggestions have not been agreed to by the Parents. I am referring Drake to you & your swallowing team in hopes that progress can be made in terms of diet modifications, suggestions for treatment, and release & support. Exercises in strengthening muscle tone and coordination may also be needed (TSHA, 2005).
By close observation of this patient and team dedication, I believe some progess may be met. Please keep me informed and call with any questions/feedback.
Sincerely,
Dr. Kendall B. Shakman, M.D.
Hearing Assoc, T. (2005). What is Dysphagia? . Retrieved October 14, 2006, from
The voice of the referral letter is that of the pediatrician. The audience is the clinician and possibly the caretaker of the child. The author is explaining the child’s medical history and other information necessary to make a referral. The author also explains that the reference is made for specific treatment. I would like to “bless” the professionalism of the letter. I think that the format is very structured, yet, easy to follow. I would address the typos on the words “equipment”, “recommendations” and “progress”. This will help in making the letter more professional.
[...] Quote three specific pieces of feedback (not the whole responses, just parts of a response) that you received on your work that were particularly helpful to you in revising (not editing, revising the content). Include links to these comments. 1. “I think there are still a lot of words in this that a person, such as the family of a patient, might not understand.” 2. ” I think you could give an example to help illustrate the behavior.” 3. “I may have trouble visualizing the true problem if I did not know the disorder” Quote three specific pieces of feedback (not the whole responses, just parts of responses) that you gave to someone else that you believe were most likely helpful to them in revising their own work. Include links to these comments. 1. “I would like to address the lack of statistical evidence.” 2. “is supposed to be a conversation, but is very formal” 3. typos on the words “equipment”, “recommendations” and “progress” Examine your examples for the first two items above and write about what this information tells you about the kind of peer responses you give. [...]