The role of the dietician is underestimated in several establishments and there is a need to understand into detail the full benefits.

1. ROLE OF DIETICIAN IN THE
HEALTHCARE TEAM
Juliana Abena Yeboah Demanya (Mrs)

2.  The dietician provides a high quality therapeutic and advisory
service, to improve the health of the individual patient by
appropriate nutrition intervention.
 Dieticians help promote good health through proper eating.
 They supervise the preparation and service of food, develop
modified diets, participate in research, and educate individuals and
groups on good nutritional habits.
 A dietician may provide specific artificial nutritional needs to patients
unable to consume food normally.
INTRODUCTION

3. The work performed by a Clinical Dietician includes the
following:
1. Assessing the nutritional status of malnourished patients and
those at risk of malnutrition using anthropometries
2. Calculating nutritional requirements of individual patients,
and designing a plan of care to meet these nutritional
requirements.
3. Organising enteral (tube) and parenteral (intravenous)
nutrition support.
4. Instructing patients and their relatives if necessary, on the
management of their therapeutic diet.
CLINICAL DIETICIAN

4. 5. Ordering special meals and nutritional supplements as appropriate
for individual patients based on laboratory findings.
6. Monitoring patients’ progress and outcome on nutritional support
or therapeutic diet and keeping the team informed through
attendances at ward conferences or ward rounds.
7. Advising the patients and the team prior to discharge on the
nutritional supplements to be prescribed.
8. Arranging outpatient follow up with the Department of Nutrition
and Dietetics if appropriate.
CLINICAL DIETICIAN

5. 9. Educating patients being discharged on home nutritional
support.
10. Assist in the training and educating of other health care
workers. Such as teaching the following students during
clinical attachment
11. Involves in public or community outreach programs and
activities to increase the awareness of food, diet and nutrition
in preventing diseases and promoting health.
CLINICAL DIETICIAN

6. Conditions Requiring Dietetic
Intervention
 Under nutrition ( underweight,
kwashiorkor, marasmus)
 Heart Diseases
 Hyperlipidaemia e.g. high
cholesterol
 Hypertension (High Blood
Pressure)
 Liver Disease
 Cancer
 Diabetes
 Obesity
 Coeliac Disease
 Stroke
 HIV/AIDS
 Swallowing Difficulties (Dysphagia)
 Crohn’s Disease
 Polycystic Ovarian
Syndrome(PCOS)
 Kidney Disease
 Diagnosed Food Allergy /
Intolerance
 Malabsorption States
 Neurological disorders
 Intensive care problems: burn
cases, accident cases
 Communicable diseases: malaria

7.  Clinical Dieticians
 Gerontological Dieticians
 Paediatric Dieticians
 Research Dieticians
 Renal Dieticians
 Administrative Dieticians
Specialities of Dieticians