Clinical Nutrition

Why Children's Health℠?

Staffed by registered dietitian nutritionists, Clinical Nutrition follows every patient treated by Children's Health throughout the continuum of care – during admission for an acute illness, after hospitalization in a follow-up clinic and via outpatient referral for nutritional counseling. The department provides services seven days a week and on-call pager support 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The dietitians spent more than 30,000 hours per year caring for patients.

Dietitians at Children's Health have a wide variety of experience. Many of them have earned additional American Dietetics Association certifications. Because of their expertise, they frequently have been featured throughout the local and national media speaking on such topics as obesity, healthy eating and pediatric renal failure. 

Nutrition Clinic

The dietitian* may provide nutrition assessment and counseling for a variety of diagnoses:

• Obesity or inappropriate weight gain
• Failure to gain weight/failure to thrive
• Feeding disorders
• Tube feedings
• Other special nutrition needs

*You will not be seeing a physician at your nutrition clinic visit.

For more on nutrition visit our Food & Fitness page.

Research

Children's Health is a teaching institution where Medical Nutrition Therapy is led by the dietitian and the medical team and where professional development is encouraged and rewarded. The dietitians are involved in research, which is vital to keeping Children's Health at the forefront of nutrition care. In 2009, the department reached its goal of having every single staff member actively involved in some form of research.

Clinical Nutrition is supported with a variety of evidence-based clinical tools and online resources. The department employs a dietitian who functions as a clinical editor, allowing the department to have well-referenced and current education materials, media responses and publications. One of those publications is the Oral, Enteral and Parenteral Nutrition Handbook and Formulary, which is provided to Children's Health clinical staff and sold to a variety of professionals around the country who use it to guide their nutrition practices. 

What to Expect

Clinical dietitians work throughout the medical center — on the inpatient units as well as in the ambulatory clinics. Clinical Nutrition staff monitors every inpatient admitted to Children's Health and provides intervention to those who are deemed at nutrition risk. Ambulatory staff screen every outpatient admitted to Children's Health.

The physician or nurse will often request the dietitian to see a child if they feel a nutrition assessment is needed.  However, families are encouraged to have the dietitian contacted at any time if they have a nutrition concern.