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At the 2001 DC Conference, a pesky intern approached me and asked, "How did you get into swallowing? What makes you so special to practice in this area???" I told her, "I kind of stumbled into it," (my generic answer ©). She wasn't satisfied with that. She persisted with, "Why don't more dietitians practice in this area? Why do other professionals dictate how we deliver nutrition for patients with swallowing problems?" She pursued with a passion that challenged me to reflect upon why and how I decided to pursue this area of practice. I told her about my mentors, Paulette Wood from Iowa, Drs. Miller, Crary, Groher, and Rosenbeck from Florida, the courses I had taken with Jeri Logemann, Joe Murray and Dr. Irene Campbell-Taylor. It dawned on me that I had actually done many hours of formal and informal training over the past five years to acquire special skills and knowledge to practice in Dysphagia Management. Some may actually say I have an obsession with swallowing. Finally, she asked me if there are any standards of practice or other documents outlining the skills and knowledge required to practice in dysphagia assessment, treatment and management. That discussion took me back to the reason I was at the conference; to share a document...