Hi, everyone! My name is Andrea Hersh. I am an intern at the Philadelphia campus and I am currently undergoing the advanced portion of my clinical rotation. I am still so excited to be part of Sodexo’s program! Each day, I leave the internship amazed at how much I learn there even at the ending stages of my clinical rotation.
I have spent most of my clinical time at Capital Health System in Trenton, but I am rotating to a few more places in the next two months to explore other clinical areas. Next week, I start my long-term care rotation and soon after that I will be moving on to the renal portion. Time is flying by and I am so happy to say that I’m enjoying every second of it. During my time at CHS, I have been able to put four years of knowledge into action. At first, I was most nervous about being in a clinical setting as that was new for me, but it has been such a rewarding experience. Being able to speak with patients, make proper adjustments to their diets, and provide nutrition education really justified my career choice. I spent time with dietitians with differing specialties and even had the opportunity to watch a sleeve gastrectomy! Seeing the sleeve gastrectomy and also learning about what those getting a sleeve must go through in regards to their diet before and after the surgery was eye-opening. The role nutrition plays in those undergoing difficulty losing weight and those who decide to have this procedure done is so significant.
I have spent most of my clinical time at Capital Health System in Trenton, but I am rotating to a few more places in the next two months to explore other clinical areas. Next week, I start my long-term care rotation and soon after that I will be moving on to the renal portion. Time is flying by and I am so happy to say that I’m enjoying every second of it. During my time at CHS, I have been able to put four years of knowledge into action. At first, I was most nervous about being in a clinical setting as that was new for me, but it has been such a rewarding experience. Being able to speak with patients, make proper adjustments to their diets, and provide nutrition education really justified my career choice. I spent time with dietitians with differing specialties and even had the opportunity to watch a sleeve gastrectomy! Seeing the sleeve gastrectomy and also learning about what those getting a sleeve must go through in regards to their diet before and after the surgery was eye-opening. The role nutrition plays in those undergoing difficulty losing weight and those who decide to have this procedure done is so significant.
One of the opportunities I had that I enjoyed very much took place during a diabetic nutrition education course. I worked with another intern in my class to provide a cooking demonstration which related to the topic of that class. Working with an outpatient dietitian who focused on diabetes, I learned the importance of continued nutrition education for those who have diabetes. The topic of discussion was the MIND diet, which is similar to the DASH diet that diabetics are frequently educated on. There were people of all ages at the class, which shows the importance of nutrition is ongoing for diabetic patients. We demonstrated the construction of a salad, salad dressing, and two different types of hummus, all of which followed the MIND diet and are great meals/snacks for those with DM. All of these experiences have had such a positive experience on this journey and I can’t wait to undergo many more as time goes on!
