How to set up aspiration precautions
Other platforms explain it with text and video. In VMS you practice it on the patient.
Aspiration happens when food, fluid or saliva goes into the lungs and can cause pneumonia. Patients after stroke or with low alertness are at high risk.
Step by step
Screen swallowing
Do a bedside swallow screen before any food, drink or oral medicine in at-risk patients. [1]
Raise the head of bed
Keep the head up at least 30 degrees, and upright at 90 degrees for meals. [1]
Follow the diet order
Use the texture and liquid thickness ordered by the speech therapist. [1]
Supervise meals
Small bites, slow pace and a chin tuck if advised. Stay upright 30 minutes after eating. [1]
Watch for signs
Coughing, wet voice, drooling or food left in the mouth suggest aspiration. [1]
Give oral care
Clean the mouth regularly to lower bacteria and pneumonia risk. [2]
Keep suction ready
Have working suction at the bedside. [1]
Common errors
- Feeding before the swallow screen.
- Feeding a patient lying flat.
- Using thin liquids when thick are ordered.
Practice it in VMS
In VMS you do this on the patient, not on paper: every step goes on the checklist with a score, and in Teach mode Blocky tells you what comes next.
VMS cases that train this skill
Sources
- Open RN, Nursing Skills 2e (Chippewa Valley Technical College) (CC BY 4.0)
- Open RN, Nursing Fundamentals 2e (CC BY 4.0)
- The Joint Commission, National Patient Safety Goals
Facts and steps follow The Joint Commission, National Patient Safety Goals. VMS is not affiliated with these organizations. Updated: 2026-10-11.