Our Work
Speech and Swallowing Therapy Cambodia understands the struggles faced by people with swallowing difficulties, and the impact it can have on their loved ones.
Currently in Cambodia, people with swallowing difficulties (also known as dysphagia) may receive some medical care from doctors and nurses. This could mean using artificial feeding tubes, such as nasogastric (NG) tubes, while they are in hospital. In some cases, patients are sent home with the tubes in place.
However, these are often unpleasant and short-term solutions. The usage of NG tubes is a limited approach and affects quality of life. It puts a person at risk of infection, leakage and discomfort.
SSTC equips clinicians with a broad range of up-to-date knowledge and skills in how to assess and treat adults with swallowing difficulties through formal education, including theory lessons and in-depth practical training with clinical supervision at Cambodian hospitals and clinics. We help clinicians understand the root cause of the difficulty, provide specialist advice about eating and drinking, and learn rehabilitation options like exercises or tailored strategies that improve swallowing.
Where We Work
Looking for specialized help? Thanks to our dysphagia management program at the University of Puthisastra, our initial set of 13 graduates are now providing care for adults with swallowing difficulties at these hospitals and clinics in Phnom Penh:
Khmer-Soviet Friendship Hospital
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Mr. Ley Samrey, nurse
Ms. Touch SreyMouy, nurse
Mrs. Um SreyPeou, nurse
Mrs. Yet Dalen, nurse
Calmette Hospital
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Ms. Chan Srey Lak, physiotherapist
Mr. Huy Vanthy, physiotherapist
Mrs. Neth Kanha, physiotherapist
Vissar Medical and Nursing Center
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Mrs. Lao Ratwattey, nurse
Sunrise Japan Hospital Phnom Penh
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Mr. Sorn Thonn, physiotherapist
Ms. Yum Sreyny, physiotherapist
Christian Medical Ministry to Cambodia – Jeremiah’s Hope
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Ms. Chhon Phalla, nurse
Dr. Lorn Bunheng, doctor
Ms. Nhem Sreyrann, nurse
The new public hospital, Techo Santepheap National Hospital, will soon have a set of clinicians trained to treat swallowing difficulties.
We’ve been helping people with swallowing difficulties in Cambodia since 2016.
Training Cambodian clinicians
Our dysphagia management certificate program at the University of Puthisastra launched in 2023, with the financial support of Rotary International. The “Foundations of Adult Dysphagia Management” course, which is a first in Cambodia, trains doctors, nurses and physical therapists how to thoroughly assess, diagnose and treat adults with swallowing difficulties.
The training was developed by SSTC and the University of Puthisastra. It’s delivered by experienced, international specialists in swallowing difficulties, and Cambodian experts, such as neurologists.
Participants will learn:
- How to select and use a range of assessment methods for adults with swallowing difficulties
- How to make decisions about a patient’s eating and drinking that maximizes their safety (e.g., avoiding chest infections) and quality of life (e.g., avoiding unnecessary usage of feeding tubes)
- How to collaborate with other healthcare professionals to provide patients with rehabilitation, advice and information to help them recover or cope with their swallowing difficulties
- How to set up a dysphagia service that works for their particular hospital
A special thank you to our partners who made this course possible:
Enroll in our certificate program
Give patients with swallowing difficulties the treatment they deserve to overcome their problems.
Developing future leaders in speech language pathology
Our one-year Dysphagia Mentorship Course began in 2024. This is vital step in the growth and sustainability of our programs. The course builds clinicians’ expertise in clinical supervision of others who are learning skills in managing swallowing difficulties.
The mentorship course aims to:
- Deepen knowledge and management skills for swallowing difficulties.
- Develop independence in increasingly complex or rare presentations.
- Develop theoretical knowledge of models of clinical learning and supervision.
- Develop skills in planning and delivering dysphagia workshops for dysphagia trainees.
- Develop skills in practise-based clinical supervision for dysphagia trainees, including: direct support in clinical context, provision of feedback and learning plans, assessing clinical competencies and contributing to summative assessments of performance.
During this course, clinicians provide some of the supervision and teaching for the trainees completing the full dysphagia course. On graduation, they will be well placed to be leaders for the future of Cambodia’s care for swallowing difficulties.
Help us continue our work
Create sustainable, lasting change in Cambodia by making effective treatment possible for people with swallowing difficulties.
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