Who performs dysphagia screening? A scoping review of international practice patterns

This project is a scoping review to map which healthcare professionals perform bedside dysphagia screening internationally. The review follows the PCC framework: Population: Adults at risk of dysphagia Concept: Dysphagia screening (who performs it, tools used, and clinical pathways) Context: International healthcare settings Primary research question: Which healthcare professionals perform bedside dysphagia screening, and how does this vary by country, clinical setting, screening tool, and patient population? Secondary research question: How are screening results used in clinical decision-making (e.g., referral to instrumental assessment or direct intervention)? Databases searched: PubMed, CINAHL, Cochrane Library, and Ichushi (Japan Medical Abstracts Society database). Languages: English and Japanese. Search dates: PubMed, CINAHL, Cochrane Library, and Ichushi were searched on 3 January 2026. All databases were searched for articles published between 2016 and 2025. Search strategy (PubMed, CINAHL, Cochrane): (dysphagia OR "swallowing disorder*") AND (screening OR "bedside assessment" OR "swallow* test") AND (nurse* OR "speech therapist*" OR "speech-language pathologist*" OR "occupational therapist*" OR dentist* OR "dental hygienist*" OR physician* OR "healthcare professional*" OR physiotherapist* OR "physical therapist*" OR "care worker*" OR "healthcare assistant*") Filters: English, Humans, Publication date 2016/01/01–2025/12/31 Results: - PubMed: 1,244 records - CINAHL (excluding MEDLINE): 155 records - Cochrane Reviews: 1 record (duplicate with PubMed) Ichushi search strategy: #1: (嚥下障害/TH OR 嚥下障害/AL OR 嚥下困難/AL) AND (DT=2016:2025) AND (PT=症例報告・事例除く) AND (PT=会議録除く) #2: スクリーニング/AL OR 評価/AL OR テスト/AL #3: (看護師/TH OR 看護師/AL) OR (言語聴覚士/TH OR 言語聴覚士/AL) OR (歯科医師/TH OR 歯科医師/AL) OR (歯科衛生士/TH OR 歯科衛生士/AL) OR (作業療法士/TH OR 作業療法士/AL) OR (医師/TH OR 医師/AL) OR (理学療法士/TH OR 理学療法士/AL) OR (介護福祉士/TH OR 介護福祉士/AL) OR (介護職/TH OR 介護職/AL) #4: #1 AND #2 AND #3 AND (PT=原著論文) AND (Full-text available) Results: 173 records The protocol, search strategy, inclusion/exclusion criteria, and data charting items are fixed before screening begins and are archived in this OSF project.