It has been a great, new experience for me at Markey. I'm really enjoying the outpatient setting and the close relationship the RD has with the nurses and the doctors. Everyone communicates about each individual patient. The referrals for patient education by an RD are solely by way of communication. The nurses or doctors will tell the RD that they are in need of nutritional help or the RD checks the chart for nutritional risks. It is an informal system which has great potential with the clinicians in the facility.
I have been giving educations about weight gain and increasing intake as well has weight loss. There is some research that shows how fresh fruits and vegetables are protective against cancers, especially GI cancers. What we have been telling the patients is that the important thing they do is eat. Obviously with cancer patients there is concern with GI problems but also loss of appetite and taste changes. I've been discussing these with patients and giving tips on how to increase their caloric intake.
During the week I have been to 2 meetings. One was about ititiating a pilot study that wil determine the need for a nutrition team. Currently, since there is only one dietitian, they cannot adequately see all patients. The goal is to show that patients have a desire to learn about nutrition and benefit from it after the intervention educations/programs.
From reading your blog and email with Karina, I know you have had a very busy first week. It sounds like you are enjoying the experiences and learning about the need for RD's in this field. I hope it continues to go well.
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