Hi, my name is Kaitlin Fitzpatrick and I am one of the Sodexo New Bedford Dietetic Interns. I am also a MS candidate in Nutrition & Dietetics at URI, and it has been a hectic ride but so far I am surviving! Currently, I am roughly halfway through ‘intermediate clinical,’ and I absolutely love how the patient load has started to get more and more complex with each new week. There have been many moments throughout the internship that have been extremely rewarding, but I have to say, last week was by far the most rewarding experience I have had thus far in patient care.
We had a patient who was admitted, who just so happened to have phenylketonuria (PKU). This was a metabolic disorder that we had briefly touched upon in undergraduate studies, but since it is extremely rare the RDs immediately thought it would be a great experience to have me assess the patient. I referenced the Nutrition Care Manual to get a better understanding of PKU and its dietary implications. I estimated the patient’s needs, drew up a list of my best intervention, and set-off to visit the patient.
At the start of our conversation, I told the patient my basic knowledge of PKU and how we could accommodate his/her needs at the hospital. As I was mid-sentence, this individual began to cry. When I asked what was wrong, the patient told me that he/she had never experienced someone so understanding and willing to help in this specific case, as it pertains to PKU. The patient said that the RDs at the hospital had gone above and beyond for him/her, and it made him/her feel like a person, not just another patient. There have been many times that I have realized just how much an RD can impact a patient in the acute care setting, but this emotional moment made me realize that I truly chose the right profession.
We had a patient who was admitted, who just so happened to have phenylketonuria (PKU). This was a metabolic disorder that we had briefly touched upon in undergraduate studies, but since it is extremely rare the RDs immediately thought it would be a great experience to have me assess the patient. I referenced the Nutrition Care Manual to get a better understanding of PKU and its dietary implications. I estimated the patient’s needs, drew up a list of my best intervention, and set-off to visit the patient.
At the start of our conversation, I told the patient my basic knowledge of PKU and how we could accommodate his/her needs at the hospital. As I was mid-sentence, this individual began to cry. When I asked what was wrong, the patient told me that he/she had never experienced someone so understanding and willing to help in this specific case, as it pertains to PKU. The patient said that the RDs at the hospital had gone above and beyond for him/her, and it made him/her feel like a person, not just another patient. There have been many times that I have realized just how much an RD can impact a patient in the acute care setting, but this emotional moment made me realize that I truly chose the right profession.
