Hi Everyone! My name is Kendall Yuhas. I am a region 8 intern based in Lodi, Ohio. I cannot believe I am already more than half way done with the internship. It feels like just yesterday I was in Denver at orientation. So far, I have completed my patient services rotation, clinical nutrition management rotation, and now I just recently concluded my clinical rotation, which were all completed at Summa Akron City Hospital. I am now on my second week of foodservice management at Wooster High School. It has been a huge change going from clinical to foodservice management. Having the skills to be able to easily adapt to new environments has definitely come in handy. After foodservice, I will be completing community hours at the Cleveland Food Bank, Highland Local Schools, and then my remaining community hours will be spent at WIC. I chose weight management as my concentration. My concentration hours will be completed at an outpatient weight management clinic at Fireland’s Regional Hospital in Sandusky Ohio. Lastly, I will complete my long-term care hours at a nursing home.
So far, clinical has been my favorite rotation. I had an amazing learning experience. I worked alongside 10 dietitians at Summa Akron City Hospital. At times it could be frustrating switching preceptors and patient populations so often. However, it was a good experience seeing how each dietitian does things differently. It helped me to create my own style of charting and interviewing/assessing patients. After my first day of clinical, I was very overwhelmed and unsure if clinical was for me. From the beginning of clinical to the time staff relief came around, my confidence level went from a 0 to a 10. By the last two weeks I was functioning independently and efficiently. One of my favorite experiences was when I was with the TPN dietitian and I attended rounds with her and the physicians. I also sat in on PICC line procedures. It was really cool to sit down and have conversations with the TPN doctor. I learned so much and was able to get over my fear/intimidation of speaking with the physicians.
My advice to future interns is to not be afraid to step out of your comfort zone. I have found that my best learning experiences have been when I pushed myself to seek out new things. My advice is to not always schedule rotations where you are comfortable. For example, I completed my clinical rotation at Summa Akron City Hospital which is where I have also worked as a diet tech for three years. My original plan was to complete my MNT concentration there as well. I decided that I needed to broaden my horizons and go to a different location and learn something completely new. That is why I decided to change my concentration to weight management. Even though it can be intimidating and nerve-racking to go to new places and work with new people, it will benefit you in the long run.
So far, clinical has been my favorite rotation. I had an amazing learning experience. I worked alongside 10 dietitians at Summa Akron City Hospital. At times it could be frustrating switching preceptors and patient populations so often. However, it was a good experience seeing how each dietitian does things differently. It helped me to create my own style of charting and interviewing/assessing patients. After my first day of clinical, I was very overwhelmed and unsure if clinical was for me. From the beginning of clinical to the time staff relief came around, my confidence level went from a 0 to a 10. By the last two weeks I was functioning independently and efficiently. One of my favorite experiences was when I was with the TPN dietitian and I attended rounds with her and the physicians. I also sat in on PICC line procedures. It was really cool to sit down and have conversations with the TPN doctor. I learned so much and was able to get over my fear/intimidation of speaking with the physicians.
My advice to future interns is to not be afraid to step out of your comfort zone. I have found that my best learning experiences have been when I pushed myself to seek out new things. My advice is to not always schedule rotations where you are comfortable. For example, I completed my clinical rotation at Summa Akron City Hospital which is where I have also worked as a diet tech for three years. My original plan was to complete my MNT concentration there as well. I decided that I needed to broaden my horizons and go to a different location and learn something completely new. That is why I decided to change my concentration to weight management. Even though it can be intimidating and nerve-racking to go to new places and work with new people, it will benefit you in the long run.
