Every once in a while, it's best to just step back from daily life and commitments and reflect on what you have learned and everything you've seen. I find myself doing this a lot lately after my internship experiences. My days are full of Interdepartmental Team Meetings, chart checking, talking with patients and families, reviewing diet histories, charting and then more homework once I get home from the hospital. But beyond basics of nutrition and figuring out whats the most important thing going on in their medical report, there is a person whose life is kind of in your hands.
Nutrition has never really killed anyone, we don't get to cut people open or administer needles filled with medications, Dietitians can't even write their own orders (not yet but soon we will!). But we are so vital in so many settings; in the hospital we can diagnose for malnutrition which is one of the leading causes of death and can lead to other diseases and illnesses, we can downgrade diet orders if we think you're not able to tolerate the food well, we can recommend tube feedings or feedings through an IV port, and we can give you education on how to make healthy lifestyle changes to better your life. In a community setting, we can work on community wide programs with education and interventions to make our surroundings a healthier place and talk about resources that available for help. Food Service Dietitians can write budgets, do managerial duties, run a kitchen properly, write menus, place and receive food orders, and work with the Dietitians to make sure the food the patients are getting is what is best for them. My favorite area a Dietitian can work in is Sports Nutrition. More than just the professional athletes need nutritional help; Sports Dietitians can work with kids, high schools, colleges and the pros! Athletes need education and help to ensure they are able to perform at the top of their game day in and day out. They need more carbs, more protein, more fat and liquids to be able to sustain and thrive. All of these areas give you new opportunities every day and that's what I love about nutrition.
Often times, I find that patients will open up more to dietitians than they will to doctors or nurses. It may just be because we have friendly faces and more time to sit and talk! Sometimes, believe it or not, patients don't want to talk to us; we've been called the food police or the diet patrol. But that's not what we are at all; I hate when someone comes up to me at functions and says "Oh you're eating that? I thought you're a Dietitian and eat healthy all the time.", we don't like when people try to be the food police to us and we certainly don't want to be the food police to you. We want to assist you in making behavior changes and implementing healthy lifestyle choices, rather than telling you you can't have something because I eat everything that you eat too!
We are also not fans of the word "diet". To me, diet means to engage in a restrictive eating behavior; and restrictive eating behaviors can lead to more serious issues and often do not work out in the end. Healthy lifestyle changes is what we want to help you do.
One last thing that I've learned and really like about what I do and it can apply to anywhere; don't be afraid to ask for what you want. Be assertive, ask questions, and step out of your comfort zone. You are smart, and it doesn't hurt to ask a question to try and expand your knowledge. Being assertive can show your confidence and your willingness to go and get what you want. And it's okay to admit that you don't know something. No one knows everything, just take every chance you can and go learn.
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