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Heartspring Announces Grand Opening of Enhanced Pediatric Feeding Therapy Room

The T-Mobile Foundation’s “Volun-T Grant” helped make this room possible.

For Immediate Release

Heartspring Media Contact:
Clara Miller, Director of Marketing & Communications
316.833.9287 | cmiller@heartspring.org

Wichita, KAN., July 18, 2024 – Heartspring, a leading provider of therapies and special education for pediatric neurodevelopment, is expanding its feeding therapy practice with a new Feeding Therapy Room. This customized space—where food becomes the most exciting thing in the room—will provide essential clinical support to families whose children struggle to eat.

"The remodel of our Feeding Therapy Room allows us to treat the whole child and their family in an optimal environment that aligns with our therapists' training and expertise," said Dan Soliday, President & CEO of Heartspring. “The T-Mobile Foundation’s gift is an investment that expands Heartspring’s health care services for children in Wichita and the surrounding region.”

The T-Mobile Foundation's Volun-T Grant is funded by T-Mobile employees and awarded to initiatives addressing critical community needs. More than 30 local T-Mobile volunteers helped complete the renovations and other projects on-site at Heartspring.

Sara Norberg, a former T-Mobile employee, connected Heartspring with The T-Mobile Foundation. All three of her children have received therapy at Heartspring’s Pediatric Therapy Clinic in east Wichita. Her five-year-old son Maddox currently receives Feeding Therapy.

“Maddox is very selective with the foods he will eat,” said Norberg. “We needed help so he could develop the skills and tools to nourish his body. He’s now trying new foods on his own, putting foods up to his mouth and even taking bites of foods he didn’t prefer before. Meals are much less stressful!”

Nikki Bina, Interdisciplinary Therapies Manager at Heartspring, says the new space facilitates positive outcomes like the Norberg family’s.

"Heartspring’s Feeding Therapy Room feels like a warm and inviting kitchen, where food takes center stage," said Bina. "The intentional design of our space encourages children to learn through play and interaction, which supports their development and increases their receptiveness to therapy.”

Children and families benefit from the new Feeding Therapy Room through:

• Play-based individual and group therapy: Children learn best through play. In Heartspring’s feeding therapy program, children are encouraged to play with their food. Group therapy provides a special opportunity for children to learn alongside their peers in a fun and supported environment.
• Best-practice care with the SOS Feeding Therapy approach: All of Heartspring’s pediatric therapists are trained in the Sequential Oral Sensory (SOS) therapy approach, an evidence-based framework for addressing children’s feeding challenges. After a comprehensive initial evaluation, our therapists develop an individualized plan to improve the child’s oral motor skills for eating, expand the textures and foods tolerated, and support families with at-home mealtime strategies.

“I am incredibly thankful for Heartspring’s therapists, as they have helped all three of my children at different points in their development,” said Norberg. “Specifically, for Maddox, we’ve been supported in learning his nuances, which has improved the way we parent him and led to him explore and try new foods.”

Heartspring’s Feeding Therapy program addresses a growing need for feeding therapy services locally and nationally. Studies show that:

• More than 1 in 37 children under the age of 5 are affected by pediatric feeding disorders each year in the United States. (Source: https://www.feedingmatters.org/)
• Feeding difficulties are seen in 25-45% of the general population, as high as 80% of children with developmental disabilities, and in 40-70% of children with chronic medical conditions. (Source: Society of Pediatric Psychology https://pedpsych.org/fact_sheets/feeding_problems/)

To learn more about Heartspring's Feeding Therapy program and other pediatric health care services, please visit heartspring.org/outpatient. Heartspring accepts most major insurance, including Blue Cross Blue Shield, United Healthcare, Aetna and Tricare. Families can call the Heartspring Pediatric Outpatient Clinic at 316-634-8701 to make an appointment or to ask questions.

Heartspring invites the media to attend the Ribbon Cutting and Open House:

• Thursday, July 18, 2024
  • 4 p.m. – Guests Arrive
  • 4:20 p.m. – Remarks & Ribbon Cutting
  • 4:45-6 p.m. – Tours of the Feeding Therapy Room & Heartspring’s Pediatric Outpatient Clinic

NOTE: Photo opportunities and interviews with Sara Norberg, who has benefited from the therapy, will be available.

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About Heartspring

Heartspring provides therapies and special education for pediatric neurodevelopment. Through its Pediatric Outpatient Clinic, Therapeutic Residential & Day School and Community Engagement programs, Heartspring addresses the gap in specialty healthcare and services for children with neurodevelopmental delays and disabilities. Originally founded in 1934 as the Institute of Logopedics, Heartspring is celebrating its 90th year and continuing its tradition of integrating evidence-based therapies into innovative support models that help children realize their full potential in communication, social interactions, mobility and daily living. Learn more at www.heartspring.org.