I have just entered my advanced clinical rotation at Jamaica Hospital Medical Center (JHMC) and I have been able to see a wide variety of patients ranging in diagnoses and cultural background. At the beginning of my basic clinical rotation I had the chance to sit in on palliative care meetings with the attendings, residents, case managers, and hospice nurses who gather to discuss patients who are currently receiving these services or are in the process of making the transition from the hospital setting to hospice services. Attending these meetings has shown me how important it is to communicate face to face with interdisciplinary fields. I find it can be easy to misunderstand the intentions of other clinicians if your only resource is the EMR, but when you come together as a team, you can hear the background and gain a better understanding of the decisions made by each profession. I also enjoyed seeing the passion behind each profession and how much they care for their patients and their families through such devastating times.
Although I have gained immense knowledge across all areas of clinical nutrition, malnutrition was briefly touched upon during my undergraduate courses. I am learning so much more about how malnutrition presents in many forms across a variety of populations and various clinical conditions. I have learned how to identify the etiologic factors that are responsible for causing malnutrition to be present in patients. Having the opportunity to perform Nutrition Focused Physical Exams (NFPE) allows me to develop the skill of identifying fat and muscle loss, while asking opened ended questions has helped me to derive a clearer food and nutrition history from the patient. Sifting through these factors to determine a malnutrition diagnosis and PES statement(s) also helps me develop a proper plan for monitoring and evaluation.
Overall, I have loved going into each day knowing I’ll learn something new. Along the way it has been helpful to have a little message board with a “To Do List,” and it has been motivating to keep a countdown of hours left after each week. I can’t wait to see what is in store for the rest of my clinical rotations, the rest of my internship, and then my career!
Although I have gained immense knowledge across all areas of clinical nutrition, malnutrition was briefly touched upon during my undergraduate courses. I am learning so much more about how malnutrition presents in many forms across a variety of populations and various clinical conditions. I have learned how to identify the etiologic factors that are responsible for causing malnutrition to be present in patients. Having the opportunity to perform Nutrition Focused Physical Exams (NFPE) allows me to develop the skill of identifying fat and muscle loss, while asking opened ended questions has helped me to derive a clearer food and nutrition history from the patient. Sifting through these factors to determine a malnutrition diagnosis and PES statement(s) also helps me develop a proper plan for monitoring and evaluation.
Overall, I have loved going into each day knowing I’ll learn something new. Along the way it has been helpful to have a little message board with a “To Do List,” and it has been motivating to keep a countdown of hours left after each week. I can’t wait to see what is in store for the rest of my clinical rotations, the rest of my internship, and then my career!
