| Catriona M. Steele | |
| Education: | M.H.Sc., Speech-Language pathology, 1991, PhD, Speech-Language pathology, 2003, University of Toronto |
| Thesis Title: | Kinematics and coordinative dynamics in normal human swallowing. |
| Thesis Year: | 2003 |
| Known For: | former President of Speech-Language and Audiology Canada |
| Workplaces: | University of Toronto |
| Main Interests: | Dysphagia |
Catriona Margaret Steele is a Canadian clinician-scientist. She is a Senior Scientist at the KITE Research Institute of the University Health Network, Full professor in the Department of Speech-Language Pathology, Rehabilitation Sciences Institute at the University of Toronto and Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Swallowing and Food Oral Processing.
Steele earned her Master's degree and PhD from the University of Toronto. After earning her Master's, Steele practiced as a medical speech-language pathologist before returning for her doctorate.[1]
From 1998 until 2000, Steele served as President of the Canadian Association of Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists (CASLPA).[1] In her role as president, she called for universities to increase their training programs for speech and hearing specialists.[2] She also began to measure pathological signals in swallowing and use surface electromyography as a way to treat Dysphagia.[3]
Upon earning her PhD, Steele accepted a position at the Toronto Rehabilitation Institute.[4] While there, she launched an online learning education course titled An Evidence Based Approach to Dysphasia Intervention in 2004.[5] She also conducted therapy meant to retrain swallowing muscles using biofeedback.[4]
In 2010, Steele and Tom Chau began designing a new technique to detect whether someone with Dysphagia had inhaled food or liquids based on sound wave vibrations.[6] In some cases, her research team used Fluoroscopy, a diagnostic imaging tool, to determine how much food or liquid went down her throat. Using this technique on a stroke victim, Steele worked with Dorothy four times a week for six weeks to strengthen her swallowing muscles, eventually allowing her to return to solid foods.[7] As a result of her research, she was elected a fellow of the American Speech–Language–Hearing Association[1] and received the Eve Kassirer Award for Outstanding Achievement.[8] By 2013, Steele was promoted to Full professor by the University of Toronto,[9] received the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal,[10] and earned the CASLPA 2013 Mentorship Award.[11]
As a member of the International Dysphagia Diet Standardisation Initiative (IDDSI) Board, Steele helped set universal guidelines for texture-modified foods and instructions for simple methods to test food and drink consistency.[12] She also worked alongside colleagues at the University of Waterloo to published a study titled Making the Most of Mealtimes, a project focused on the nutritional value of food for seniors at 32 long-term care facilities across Canada.[12] [13] In 2016, Steele received the Speech-Language and Audiology Canada Lifetime Achievement Award for "her pivotal role in the advancement of speech-language pathology, particularly as it relates to the assessment and management of dysphagia."[14]