With my internship almost coming to an end, I am looking back and feeling grateful for all my experiences and the people that I met along the way. During my food service rotation, I worked with an executive chef and other employees at a fast-paced corporate account. Cooking is something that I have enjoyed my whole life, and this is why learning how it’s being done and managed on a large scale was an invaluable experience. Interacting with the customers during breakfast and lunch hours helped me to better understand their needs. Based on my observation, I developed an event to promote the “Mindful” station during which I explained the mindful eating concept.
I stayed at the same location for my wellness rotation. While wellness could be defined differently by everyone, I used healthy and nutrient-dense foods for my events. Adding a vegetable pizza to the daily lunch menu was a huge success since many employees were vegetarians. Adding gluten free pasta at the pasta station was also a great idea, since some employees spoke with me about gluten sensitivity. Just in time for flu season, I came up with a new breakfast item called “Immune System Booster.” Customers really enjoyed a green bowl packed with nutrients from pineapple, spinach, and banana mixed with plant-based milks and topped with berries, coconut, dark chocolate, and nuts. My other event was called “Grain Bowl” which was designed for customers to understand that layer by layer, they can create a very healthy meal for themselves using just few nutrient-dense ingredients. I was also able to learn from a Sodexo dietitian who was promoting wellness in a corporate setting. Sitting in on meetings with her helped me understand what this type of job really entails.
My long-term care rotation was my first clinical experience, and I truly thought that it was a place where a dietitian can make a difference. During my rotation at a hospital, I loved learning about different medical conditions and analyzing blood work. I also enjoyed interacting with the patients and their family members while gathering assessment data. One of the things that I excelled in was charting, since the facility where I was at used a very detailed approach. During my undergrad, I learned about the nutrition-focused physical exam. Applying concepts learned in the book in a real-life setting was a very valuable experience, since the nutrition-focused physical exam was always part of my patients’ assessment.
During my community rotation, I had many different experiences, such as working with a ShopRite dietitian, cooking for seniors, and volunteering at a local food pantry. I had a very unique experience at a place called HealthBarn USA, where I had an opportunity to teach lessons about healthy eating and lifestyle to younger kids, assist in school assemblies promoting healthy eating habits, and cooking with a celebrity chef.
My advice to all future interns is to ask a lot of questions! You will come across people with so much knowledge in the field of nutrition and dietetics. Take advantage of it and learn from them and their experiences, while building your own knowledge base and your own experiences!
My advice to all future interns is to ask a lot of questions! You will come across people with so much knowledge in the field of nutrition and dietetics. Take advantage of it and learn from them and their experiences, while building your own knowledge base and your own experiences!
