“Convenient, Quality, Evidenced-Based Swallowing Evaluation”

Our Mission

Gateway Dysphagia Diagnostics is the premier provider of mobile Flexible Endoscopic Evaluation of Swallow (FEES) in the greater St. Louis area.  We provide the convenience of having an Evidence Based instrumental exam at your doorstep, in the patient’s natural living space.  Our goal is to provide convenient quality evaluations for health care providers in order to better guide the patient’s plan of care in treating their swallowing disorder.  

 

Schedule an Evaluation

Contact us and we will respond with an evaluation in 1-2 business days

Research has demonstrated a 70% error rate at the bedside, where the recommendations are either too restrictive, jeopardizing nutrition and hydration, or silent aspiration is completely missed, which can lead to pneumonia and frequent admissions to the hospital.   We can help in providing a comprehensive evaluation of the patient’s swallow function, using foods they eat, liquids they drink, and medications they take in the comfort of their own living space.  

We strive to work closely with the patients, families, facility staff, and resident speech language pathologist in order to create a comprehensive patient-centered plan to ensure safe swallowing for the patient and research based recommendations that the facility staff can feel confident implementing.

 

“Convenient, Quality, Evidenced-Based Swallowing Solutions”

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Benefits:

  • No radiation exposure

  • Patient eats normal food

  • Can be used with patients on mechanical ventilation

  • Can be performed at patient’s bedside

  • Cost effective compared to MBSS

  • No offsite transportation required

  • High definition reports in digital color

  • Staff SLP participation allowed (and encouraged!!)

How it Works:

  • You determine need for instrumental evaluation

  • Contact us by call/text/email and we respond with evaluation in 1-3 business days

  • We provide a full report, recommendations, and imaging to you same day as evaluation

About

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Hello, I’m Brad Huesgen, founder of Gateway Dysphagia Diagnostics.  With over 17 years of experience in evaluating and treating dysphagia in acute care/acute rehabilitation/skilled nursing facilities, I can attest to the importance of a quality instrumental exam in guiding patient focused care.  A native to the greater St. Louis area, I saw a need in our community for improved access to quality care and comprehensive speech services.  I started Gateway Dysphagia Diagnostics to do just that. I received my Bachelors of Arts and Master of Arts degrees at Southeast Missouri State University, and hold a Certificate in Clinical Competence with the American Speech-Language and Hearing Association (ASHA). I received training in performing Flexible Endoscopic Evaluation of Swallow (FEES) from Dr. Michael Crary and Dr. Giselle Mann, and have been performing FEES for over 16 years.