Dr. Isuru Dharmarathna
PhD(NZ), BSc. (Hons) Speech & Hearing Sciences(SL), FHEA (UK)
PG Cert. in Clinical Education (UK), PG Cert. in Quantitative Research Methodology (NZ)
Cert. in Supported Employment (UK)
Senior Lecturer (Grade II)
Specialization
Speech - Language Therapy
Research Interests
- Swallowing disorders in children and adults
- Clinical education and adult learning
- Vocational training and supported employment
Awards and Fellowships
2022
- An honorarium of USD 300 for presenting at the virtual ‘Feeding Matters’, 9th International Paediatric Feeding Disorders Conference, April 2022
2021
- The Outstanding Young Researcher (3rd place) at the Vice-Chancellor’s Awards, 2021
- Two Senate Honours for Publications, 2021
- The New Investigator Award (2nd place) at the Annual Meeting of the Dysphagia Research Society, USA
- Outstanding Abstract Award at the 8th International Paediatric Feeding Disorders Conference, USA
- The Outstanding Early Career Researcher (3rd place) at the Vice-Chancellor’s Awards, University of Kelaniya, 2020
- Doctoral thesis was selected for the Dean’s List of Excellence, The University of Auckland, New Zealand
- Best oral presentation for ‘Developing a protocol of quantitative videofluoroscopic measures to predict aspiration in children’ at the Biannual Conference of the Sri Lanka Association for Child Development (SLACD), January 2021
2020
- Was awarded with The Justine J. Sheppard Dysphagia in IDD (intellectual and developmental disabilities) Award at the Annual Meeting of the Dysphagia Research Society, March 2020, Puerto Rico, USA
- Was awarded with The CSDRG (Communication Sciences and Disorders Clinical Trials Research Group) Logemann Travel Grant at the Annual Meeting of the Dysphagia Research Society, March 2020, Puerto Rico, USA
2018
- Was awarded with a fellowship of the Higher Education Academy, UK
2017
- Was awarded with a Commonwealth Scholarship to undertake a distance learning MSc (Clinical Education) at the University of Edinburgh, UK
- Was awarded with a travel grant to present research at the Annual Convention of American Speech- Language and Hearing Association in Los Angeles, USA by the University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka
2016
- Was awarded with a grant to attend a training programme on ‘Supported Employment’ in Belfast, Northern Ireland
- Was fully funded by University of Kelaniya to visit and represent the university at the Chongqing Normal University, China
2015
- Won the award for the ‘Best Portfolio’ of the Staff Development Course for University Teachers (Cycle 15) conducted by the University of Kelaniya
- Was awarded a research grant to present research study at the Annual Convention of the American Speech, Language and Hearing Association in Denver, USA by the Faculty of Medicine, University of Kelaniya
2014
- Was awarded with the Prof. Sheila Wirz Gold Medal for the best performance in Speech and Language Therapy 2008-2009
Orations/Guest lectures/Invited Speech/Plenary
Invited speech/ guest lectures
2022
- Was invited to be a resource person at a panel discussion on ‘preparing research proposals’ at the International Conference of physiotherapy, occupational therapy and speech-language therapy, July 2022, Sri Lanka
2021
- Was invited to speak on ‘Objective quantitative videofluoroscopic measures of swallowing in children’ by the Centre for Disability Studies, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka
- Represented the project team to speak on ‘Right for employment of People with Disabilities’ at the Vocational Training Institute, Amunukumbura, Sri Lanka
- Was invited to conduct a webinar for parents on ‘Management of feeding difficulties in children’ by the Sri Lanka Association for Child Development (SLACD), Sri Lanka
2019
- Featured in the newsletter of the University of Edinburgh as a Commonwealth Scholar
2018
- Was invited to publish an article on instrumental assessment in paediatric dysphagia, for the Journal ‘Current Opinion in Otolaryngology and Head & Neck Surgery’
2017
- Was invited to take part in the ‘Mahajana- Suwadhana’, International Healthcare Exhibition organized by the College of Physicians in Sri Lanka
2016
- Was invited by the Sri Lanka Stroke Association to conduct a training programme for health care professionals on ‘The Management of the Stroke Patients in Stroke Units” in the Monaragala and Badulla districts of Sri Lanka
- Was invited by the Sri Lanka Stroke Association for a 1-day workshop on “Role of Speech and Language Therapist in Stroke Management” for health care professionals in Government-based hospitals in Western Province, Sri Lanka
2015
- Presented on “Intervention of Speech and Language Therapy for Children with Neurodevelopmental Disabilities: Evidence from a University-based Clinic” at a Forum organized by Sri Lanka Association for Child Development
2014
- Was invited to conduct a workshop for parents on “Typical Communication Development in Children of 0-5 years and Stimulating Communication Skills in Children” at the ‘Sinha’ Regiment Military Camp, Ambepussa, Sri Lanka
Publications
Publications in peer reviewed Journals:
- Miles, A., Dharmarathna, I., Jardine, M., & Allen, J. (2022). Developing a protocol for quantitative videofluoroscopic analysis of swallowing in children. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology
- Fuller, L., Miles, A., Dharmarathna, I., & Allen, J. (2022). Variability in Swallowing Biomechanics in Infants with Feeding Difficulties: A Videofluoroscopic Analysis. Dysphagia
- Colonne, U., Dharmarathna, I., Siriwardane, D., Handy, T., Gamage, M., Athawuda, N., & Sumanasena, S. (2022). Stakeholders' perspectives on the provision of vocational training for youth with disabilities in Sri Lanka: protocol for a mixed-methods study. BMJ Open
- Dharmarathna, I., Miles, A., & Allen, J. (2021). Predicting penetration-aspiration through quantitative swallow measures of children: A videofluoroscopic study. European Archives of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology
- Dharmarathna, I., Miles, A., & Allen, J. (2021). Quantifying bolus residue and its risks in children: A videofluoroscopic study. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 30, 687-696. https://doi.org/10.1044/2020_AJSLP-20-00275
- Dharmarathna, I., Miles, A., Fuller, L., & Allen, J. (2020). Quantitative video-fluoroscopic analysis of swallowing in infants. International Journal of Pediatric Otorhinolaryngology
- Dharmarathna, I., Miles, A., & Allen, J. (2020). Twenty years of quantitative instrumental measures of swallowing in children: A systematic review. European Journal of Paediatrics, 179 (1), 1-21. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00431-019-03546-x
- Dharmarathna, I., & Perera, S. (2019). First steps towards validating the Behavioural Paediatric Feeding Assessment Scale (BPFAS) in Sri Lanka. Psychology Aotearoa, 11(1), 48-52.
- Dharmarathna, I., Miles, A., & Allen, J. (2018). Current approaches to instrumental assessment of swallowing in children. Current Opinion in Otolaryngology & Head and Neck Surgery, 26(6), 349-355. https://doi.org/10.1097/MOO.0000000000000492
- Saleem, S., Bandara, M. M. M. K., Subajini, A. A. N., Udugama, K. L. L. G., Dharmarathna I., Kitnasamy, G., and Hettiarachchi, S. "Views of Teachers, Caregivers and Children with Cerebral Palsy on the Understanding and Use of Augmentative and Alternative Communication Systems in Sri Lanka.", E-repository of the University of Kelaniya
Publications in conference proceedings
- Prasangi, B., & Dharmarathna, I. “Physiological parameters of breastfeeding in infants with feeding disorders”, Annual Convention of the American Speech- Language and Hearing Association (ASHA), November 2022, USA. (Accepted poster presentation)
- Perera, D., Dharmarathna, I., & Udugama, L. “Objective physiological parameters of suck-swallow coordination in premature infants”, Annual Convention of the American Speech- Language and Hearing Association (ASHA), November 2022, USA. (Accepted poster presentation)
- Ginigadhdara, S., Panterliyon, N., & Dharmarathna, I. “Primary Caregivers’ Satisfaction on Providing Speech and Language Therapy Services for Adults via Telehealth in Sri Lanka”, Annual Convention of the American Speech- Language and Hearing Association (ASHA), November 2019, USA. (Accepted poster presentation)
- Perera, D, Dharmarathna, I., & Udugama, L. “Physiological differences of suck-swallow-breathe coordination between bottle-fed and breastfed premature infants”, International Conference of physiotherapy, occupational therapy and speech-language therapy, July 2022, Sri Lanka. (Oral presentation)
- Prasangi, B., & Dharmarathna, I. “A novel approach to describe suck-swallow-breathe coordination using objective physiological measures”, International Conference of physiotherapy, occupational therapy and speech-language therapy, July 2022, Sri Lanka. (Oral presentation)
- Dharmarathna, I, “Management of Pediatric Feeding Disorders in an Under-Resourced Community: Evidence from Sri Lanka”, ‘Feeding Matters’, 9th International Paediatric Feeding Disorders Conference, April 2022. (Technical session)
- Dharmarathna, I., Miles, A., & Allen, J., “Obtaining quantitative swallow measures of children through videofluoroscopy”, ‘Feeding Matters’, 8th International Paediatric Feeding Disorders Conference, April 2021. (Technical session)
- Dharmarathna, I., Miles, A., & Allen, J., “Developing a protocol for quantitative analysis of swallowing in children”, Annual Virtual Meeting of the Dysphagia Research Society, March 2021. (Poster presentation)
- Dharmarathna, I., Miles, A., & Allen, J., “Quantifying bolus residue and its risks in children: A videofluoroscopic study”, Annual Virtual Meeting of the Dysphagia Research Society, March 2021. (Oral presentation)
- Dharmarathna, I., Miles, A., & Allen, J. “Developing a protocol of quantitative videofluoroscopic measures to predict aspiration in children”, Biannual Conference of the Sri Lanka Association for Child Development (SLACD), January 2021. (Oral presentation)
- Dharmarathna, I., Miles, A., & Allen, J. “Quantifying bolus residue and its risks in children: A videofluoroscopic study”, Biannual Conference of the Sri Lanka Association for Child Development (SLACD), January 2021. (Poster presentation)
- Dharmarathna, I., Miles, A., Fuller, L., & Allen, J. “Quantitative video-fluoroscopic analysis of swallowing in infants”, Biannual Conference of the Sri Lanka Association for Child Development (SLACD), January 2021. (Poster presentation)
- Priyadarshana, S., & Dharmarathna, I., “Administering Sinhala Pedi-EAT detecting feeding difficulties in children with disabilities: Evidence from a Sri Lankan University Clinic”, Biannual Conference of the Sri Lanka Association for Child Development (SLACD), January 2021. (Oral presentation)
- Dharmarathna, I., Miles, A., & Allen, J., “Quantitative videofluoroscopic analysis of swallowing in infants”, Annual Virtual Congress of the European Society of Swallowing Disorders, September-October 2020. (Poster presentation)
- Dharmarathna, I., Miles, A., & Allen, J., “Predicting penetration-aspiration through quantitative swallow measures of children: A videofluoroscopic study”, Annual Virtual Congress of the European Society of Swallowing Disorders, September-October 2020. (Oral presentation)
- Priyadarshana, S., & Dharmarathna, I., “Administering Sinhala Pedi-EAT detecting feeding difficulties in children with disabilities: Evidence from a Sri Lankan University Clinic”, Annual Conference of the American Speech-Language and Hearing Association (ASHA), November 2020, USA. (Poster presentation)
- Dharmarathna, I., “Effectiveness of hands-on clinical practice for speech-language therapy students: Evidence from Sri Lanka”, Annual Conference of Australian & New Zealand Association for Health Professional Educators (ANZAHPE), 2020, Australia. (Poster presentation)
- Dharmarathna, I., Miles, A., & Allen, J., “Twenty years of quantitative instrumental measures of swallowing in children: A systematic review”, Annual Meeting of the Dysphagia Research Society, March 2020, Puerto Rico, USA. (Poster presentation)
- Dharmarathna, I., Miles, A., & Allen, J., “Profiling swallowing in infants with feeding difficulties through objective video-fluoroscopic measures”, Annual Meeting of the Dysphagia Research Society, March 2020, Puerto Rico, USA. (Oral presentation)
- Jayawardane, D., & Dharmarathna, I., “Identifying Eating/ Drinking Skills of Young Children with Cerebral Palsy in Sri Lanka: Implementation of the Pediatric Eating Assessment Tool (Pedi-EAT)”, Annual Meeting of the Dysphagia Research Society, March 2020, Puerto Rico, USA. (Poster presentation)
- Dharmarathna, I., & Perera, S., “Adaptation of the Behavioral Pediatric Feeding Assessment Scale (BPFAS) in Sri Lanka”, Annual Meeting of the Dysphagia Research Society, March 2020, Puerto Rico, USA. (Poster presentation)
- Samarathunga, M., & Dharmarathna, I., “Lexical- Semantic Deficits in Sinhala Speaking Persons with Post Stroke Aphasia”, Annual Convention of the American Speech- Language and Hearing Association (ASHA), November 2019, USA. (Poster presentation)
- Dharmarathna, I., Miles, A., & Allen, J., “Profiling objective video-fluoroscopic measures of swallowing in children”, Postgraduate Research Showcase, Faculty of Science, The University of Auckland, September 2019, Auckland, New Zealand. (Poster presentation)
- Dharmarathna, I., & Miles, A., “Profiling objective video-fluoroscopic measures of swallowing in children: Aspirators vs Non-aspirators”, In-house Convention of the School of Psychology, The University of Auckland, February 2019, Auckland, New Zealand. (Oral presentation)
- Sameera, S., & Dharmarathna, I. “Parental Attitudes Towards Participation in Speech and Language Therapy at a University Clinic in Western Province, Sri Lanka” was presented at the Annual Convention of the American Speech- Language and Hearing Association, USA in Boston, USA in November 2018. (Poster presentation)
- Perera, S., & Dharmarathna, I. “Adaptation of the Behavioural Paediatric Feeding Assessment Scale (BPFAS) in Sri Lankan Clinical Context”, was presented at the 21st Annual Scientific Congress of the Sri Lanka College of Paediatricians in Kandy, Sri Lanka from 19-21, 2018 (Oral Presentation)
- Dharmarathna, I., Sumanasena, S, & Lokubalasuriya, T. “Developing a Multi-Disciplinary Team University Clinic for Children with Disabilities and their families in an under-sourced context, Sri Lanka”, was presented at the 6th Global Congress for Consensus in Paediatrics and Child Health (CIP) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, from November 12-15, 2017 (Oral presentation)
- Sameera, S., Dharmarathna, I., & Godamunne, P. “Parental Attitudes Towards Participation in Speech and Language Therapy at a University Clinic in the Western Province, Sri Lanka”, was accepted to present at the 6th Global Congress for Consensus in Paediatrics and Child Health (CIP) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, from November 12-15, 2017 (Oral presentation)
- Niroshini, K. A. S., Dharmarathna, I., & Godamunne, P. “Awareness and Attitudes towards Inclusive Education (IE) among Government School Teachers’ in Gampaha District, Western Province, Sri Lanka” was accepted to present at the 6th Global Congress for Consensus in Paediatrics and Child Health (CIP) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, from November 12-15, 2017 (Oral presentation)
- Hettiarachchi, S., Walisundara, D., & Dharmarathna, I. “Employment for All: Views of Graduates with Disabilities on Employment Prospects in Sri Lanka”, was accepted to present at the Annual Convention of American Speech- Language and Hearing Association (ASHA) in California, November 2017 (Poster presentation)
- Dharmarathna, I., Saleem, S., Udugama, K.L.L.G., Lokubalasuriya, T., Sivasubramaniam, G., Nonis, D., Gunathilake, G., Priyangika, I., Perera, N., Hettiarachchi, S., Saafeer, M., Nagoor, R., Sajana, F., Najimudeen, N., & Gowritharan, P., “Developing and Validating a Speech & Phonology Assessment in Sri Lankan Tamil for Young Children” presented at the Annual Convention of American Speech Language and Hearing Association, Philadelphia, USA, 2016 (Poster presentation)
- Dharmarathna I., De Saram O., & Waidyasekara C., "Changing Lives: The First Year as Newly Qualified Speech and Language Therapists in Sri Lanka" Paper presented at the Annual Convention of American Speech, Language and Hearing Association, Colorado, USA (Poster presentation)
- Dharmarathna I., & Bakmeewewa D., A., "A Comparison of Errors in Languages Spoken by Sinhala-English Bilingual Persons with Post-Stroke Aphasia", International Conference on the Humanities, University of Kelaniya (Oral Presentation)
- Hettiarachchi, S., Kitnasamy, G., Bandara, M., Lokubalasuriya, T., Saleem, S., Nonis, D., Dharmarathna, I. & Udugama, K. L. L. G., “Validating the Cerebral Palsy Quality of Life for Children (CPQOL-Child) Questionnaire for use in Sri Lanka”, presented at the Annual Convention of American Speech, Language and Hearing Association, Colorado, USA (Poster presentation)
- L. L. G. Udugama, I. Dharmarathna, Saleem, S., Nonis, D., & S. Hettiarachchi, “Developing and Validating a Rapid Syntactic Screening Procedure in Sinhala for Children in Sri Lanka” presented at the Medical Faculty Research Forum, University of Kelaniya (Oral presentation)
- Dharmarathna I., Bakmeewewa D., A., "A Comparison of Errors in Languages Spoken by Sinhala-English Bilingual Persons with Post-Stroke Aphasia", presented at the 8th Annual research Conference of the Royal Asiatic Society of Sri Lanka (Oral presentation)
- Bandara M., Subajini N., Kitnasamy G., Udugama L., Dharmarathna I. & Hettiarachchi S., "Giving Voice: The Effectiveness of an Experiential Workshop to Increase the Knowledge and Use of Alternative Augmentative Communication (AAC) Devices among Teachers", ‘Voice for All’, International Conference on Disability, Speech & Language Therapy and Audiology Conference (Oral Presentation)
- Dharmarathna I., & Bakmeewewa D., A., "A Comparison of Errors in Languages Spoken by Sinhala-English Bilingual Persons with Post-Stroke Aphasia”, Annual Convention of American Speech, Language and Hearing Association, Florida, USA (Poster Presentation)
- Dharmarathna, I., & Bakmeewewa, D, A., “Are the language errors same in monolingual and bilingual post-stroke aphasics?” presented at the ‘Voice for All’, International Conference on Disability, Speech & Language Therapy and Audiology Conference (Oral presentation)
- Saleem, S., M. M. M. K. Bandara, A. A. N. Subajini, K. L. L. G. Udugama, Dharmarathna, G. Kitnasamy, & S. Hettiarachchi, “Giving Voice; The Effectiveness of an Experimental Workshop to Increase The Knowledge and Use of Alternative Augmentative Communication Devices Among Teachers” presented at the A Voice for All’, Speech & Language Therapy, Audiology and Disability Conference (Oral presentation)
Ongoing Research
- Enhancing quality and relevance of vocational training for the Youth with Disability (technical lead)
- Improving validity and reliability in detecting swallowing disorders in children
- Improving reliability in interpretation of flexible endoscopic evaluation of swallowing (FEES) using a new protocol
Professional Contributions
- Member and Inclusion Representative of the Conference Organizing Committee of the Feeding Matters, 10th International Paediatric Feeding Disorders Conference, April 2023
- Member and Inclusion Representative of the Conference Organizing Committee of the Feeding Matters, 9th International Paediatric Feeding Disorders Conference, April 2022
- Committee member of Sri Lanka Association of Speech and Language Pathologists (SLASLP) 2022
- Member of the Dysphagia Research Society (DRS) since 2020
- Member of the European Society of the Swallowing Disorders (ESSD) since 2020
- Member of the Sub-Committee on Vocational and Technical Training: Focus on Persons with Disabilities, Policy Developing Office, Prime Minister’s Office, Sri Lanka 2017
- Committee member of Sri Lanka Association of Speech and Language Therapists/ Pathologists 2016-2017
- Member of Sri Lanka Association for Child Development since 2015
Service Functions
2021-2022
Technical lead of a grant project
- Enhancing quality and relevance of vocational training for the Youth with Disabilities in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka’s lead-researcher in an international collaborative research project initiated by the University of Düsseldorf, Germany
- Evaluation of swallowing disorders in paediatric patients – comparison between clinical evaluation and instrument-based diagnostics
Since 2015 Supervision of undergraduate research projects
2022-2023
- Evaluating parental satisfaction on telehealth practice in management of pediatric feeding disorders
- Identifying the risk of dysphagia in post-stroke patients
- Heath- Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) of parents of children with feeding disorders
2021-2022
- Physiological parameters of breast-feeding in infants with feeding disorders
- Objective physiological parameters of suck-swallow coordination in premature infants (co-supervision)
- Primary Caregivers’ Satisfaction on Providing Speech and Language Therapy Services for Adults via Telehealth in Sri Lanka (co-supervision)
2019-2020
- Administering the Sinhala Pedi-EAT, A Parent Reporting Screening Tool to detect Feeding Difficulties in Children with Disabilities: Evidence from University Clinic in Sri Lanka
2018-2019
- Validating the Behavioural Paediatric Feeding Assessment Scale (BPFAS) in Sri Lanka: A comparative study
2017-2018
- Adapting the Behavioural Paediatric Feeding Assessment Scale (BPFAS) in Sri Lanka
- Using the Paediatric Eating Assessment Tool (Pedi-EAT) to Identify Eating/ Drinking Difficulties in Children with Cerebral Palsy in Sri Lankan Clinical Context
2016-2017
- Awareness and Attitudes towards Inclusive Education (IE) among Government School Teachers’ in Gampaha District, Sri Lanka
- Parental attitudes towards participation in Speech and Language Therapy intervention: Evidence from University Clinic in Western Province, Sri Lanka
- Lexical- semantic deficits in Sinhala speaking persons with post stroke aphasia: evidence from single word auditory comprehension
Undergraduate research co-supervision
- Perspectives towards the use and types of Non-speech Oral Motor Exercises (NSOMEs) among Sri Lankan Speech and Language Therapists
- Social participation of school aged children with disabilities in the Kurunegala district, Sri Lanka: Caregivers’ perspectives
- Mainstream education teachers’ perspectives towards the implementation of ‘Inclusive Education’ in the Kurunegala district, Sri Lanka
2015 Undergraduate research coordination
- Pragmatics in Aphasia: An Analysis of Discourse Performances
- A Comparison of Word Retrieval Performance between Grammatical Class and Linguistic Contexts; and its effect on the information content of discourse in Individuals with Aphasia, Post-Stroke
- Retrieval of Word Classes in Monolingual Tamil Speakers with Aphasia
- Strategies used by Speakers with Aphasia and their Communication Partners in Enhancing Communication Success
- Caregivers’ perceptions of quality of life of their children with cerebral palsy in selected Sri Lankan institutions
- Stress in caregivers of persons with and without aphasia post stroke, their needs, barriers and facilitators
Since 2015 Co-investigation in research
- Stakeholders’ perspectives on provision of vocational training for youth with disabilities in Sri Lanka
- Validating the Cerebral Palsy Quality of Life for Children (CPQOL-Child) Questionnaire for use in Sri Lanka
- Developing and Validating a Multisensory Narrative Assessment for Children aged between 3 to 5 years
- Developing and Validating the Sinhala Syntax Screening Test for Children aged between 3 to 5 years
- Developing & Validating a Speech & Phonology Assessment in Sri Lankan Tamil for Young Children
- 'Wabbits' or 'Labbits': Universal vs. Language-Specific Phonological Processes in Sri Lankan English-Speaking Children
- Giving Voice: The Effectiveness of an Experiential Workshop to Increase the Knowledge and Use of Alternative Augmentative Communication (AAC) Devices among Teachers
- Changing Lives: The First year as newly qualified Speech & Language Therapists in Sri Lanka
Contact Details
Department
Disability Studies
Disability Studies
Tel
+94112958251 (Office)
+94112958251 (Office)
Email
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