Hello there! My name is Stephanie Caljouw and I am a Sodexo Dietetic Intern at the New Bedford Campus. It is unbelievable to me that the internship is beginning to come to an end. I feel I have learned an incredible amount of information in such a short amount of time and I definitely feel prepared to apply that information in the real world. My concentration is medical nutrition therapy, so, it’s safe to say I have spent quite a bit of time in the hospital throughout the internship.
Recently, I was fortunate enough to get to spend some time at the dialysis clinic in my local community. This was an amazing opportunity! I have come across many renal patients in the hospital and always felt I did not completely understand the journey of someone who is going through dialysis treatment.
At the clinic, the patients get monthly lab reports. The dietician goes over their lab values and explains what they mean to each individual. The patients love to get their reports and look forward to it every month! Each report provides potassium, albumin, phosphorus, calcium, parathyroid hormone and hemoglobin levels. Being able to go through and take the time to discuss with the patients how their diet affects their lab values was incredibly beneficial. I feel much more prepared when discussing renal diets with patients in the acute care setting now.
I highly recommend if you can, spend some time in a dialysis center to better understand renal disease – it can be a complex subject!
Recently, I was fortunate enough to get to spend some time at the dialysis clinic in my local community. This was an amazing opportunity! I have come across many renal patients in the hospital and always felt I did not completely understand the journey of someone who is going through dialysis treatment.
At the clinic, the patients get monthly lab reports. The dietician goes over their lab values and explains what they mean to each individual. The patients love to get their reports and look forward to it every month! Each report provides potassium, albumin, phosphorus, calcium, parathyroid hormone and hemoglobin levels. Being able to go through and take the time to discuss with the patients how their diet affects their lab values was incredibly beneficial. I feel much more prepared when discussing renal diets with patients in the acute care setting now.
I highly recommend if you can, spend some time in a dialysis center to better understand renal disease – it can be a complex subject!
