Hello everyone, my name is Leslie Kohut and I was lucky enough to have completed my clinical rotation and now halfway through my food service in the state of Illinois. I’ve had amazing opportunities during my rotations to slowly chip away at my community rotation as well. Nearing the halfway point of my overall hours, I’ve gone through and learned a lot from the different aspects. My preceptors and the dietitians I’ve had the pleasure of working alongside have opened my eyes to so many more possibilities then I ever had imagined.
Starting out with clinical was beyond intimidating since all I walked in knowing was everything from my undergraduate program. The entire week before starting I was going through my old power points and study sets trying so much to be prepared. As much as it helped me calm my nerves walking in that first day, almost everything you know kind of flies right past you. What you know, you know- but then I was at the point of putting these memories into real-life situations which was very horrifying at first. I learned to always ask questions even if it was something as silly as abbreviations that they use. Getting the opportunity to see their radiation oncology for a week, swallow evaluations for a few days, and be on-site with their ICU team for over the span of my entire last month gave me such a new outlook on the possibilities that we’re able to come and learn from.
My favorite aspect so far was getting to be on site with my community preceptor, Theresa. I was overjoyed to be able to join her multiple times at a few corporations, one even being The Joint Commission. We would set up monthly booths and have handouts, raffles and have one-on-one meetings with employees at the site and have hour-long sessions of in-depth counseling. It was wonderful to see how interactive the role of a dietitian could be at these sites and having these opportunities to watch her with patients and take notes so going forward I could feel more confident helping those who need it.
I can not wait to finish my food service and have my next steps with long term care and my concentration and finish up my community. Looking back, it’s astounding to see how far I’ve come and really, how quickly these hours fly by in this internship. One thing that has gotten me through my internship that I’d love to leave everyone with and hopefully it will help you too, as said by the wonderful Fred Rogers, “Anything human is mentionable, and anything mentionable is manageable.”
Starting out with clinical was beyond intimidating since all I walked in knowing was everything from my undergraduate program. The entire week before starting I was going through my old power points and study sets trying so much to be prepared. As much as it helped me calm my nerves walking in that first day, almost everything you know kind of flies right past you. What you know, you know- but then I was at the point of putting these memories into real-life situations which was very horrifying at first. I learned to always ask questions even if it was something as silly as abbreviations that they use. Getting the opportunity to see their radiation oncology for a week, swallow evaluations for a few days, and be on-site with their ICU team for over the span of my entire last month gave me such a new outlook on the possibilities that we’re able to come and learn from.
My favorite aspect so far was getting to be on site with my community preceptor, Theresa. I was overjoyed to be able to join her multiple times at a few corporations, one even being The Joint Commission. We would set up monthly booths and have handouts, raffles and have one-on-one meetings with employees at the site and have hour-long sessions of in-depth counseling. It was wonderful to see how interactive the role of a dietitian could be at these sites and having these opportunities to watch her with patients and take notes so going forward I could feel more confident helping those who need it.
I can not wait to finish my food service and have my next steps with long term care and my concentration and finish up my community. Looking back, it’s astounding to see how far I’ve come and really, how quickly these hours fly by in this internship. One thing that has gotten me through my internship that I’d love to leave everyone with and hopefully it will help you too, as said by the wonderful Fred Rogers, “Anything human is mentionable, and anything mentionable is manageable.”
