Nutrition Focused Physical Exam: An Essential Piece in Evaluation of Clinical Competency

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This article discussed the importance of using the Nutrition Focused Physical Exam (NFPE) as part of the basic clinical competencies that the clinical nutrition manager (CNM) uses to assess her/his RDNs. The NFPE is necessary for the nutrition assessment, and it is included in the Academy’s Standards of Practice (SOPs) for RDNs.The aim of using the NFPE is to allow RDNs to analyze the physical manifestations that occur as a result of excessive of deficiencies in micronutrients / macronutrient intake, therefore, to be able to identify the nutrition-related health problems. The comprehensive NFPE is composed of three categories:

·         Group 1: Oral, perioral structure (tongue, gum, lips, teeth)
·         Group 2: Skin and related structure (skin, eyes, nails)
·         Group 3: Other body system (lean body mass, fat store, hair)

To include the  NFPE in the RDNs competencies may not be an easy process since many dietitians have different backgrounds in learning and training, and the ideas of doing hands-on assessment may be overwhelming. There are many ways CNMs can train their dietitians to be able to perform the NFPE, they may send them to attend workshops (such as “Fine Tuning Your Practice with Nutrition-Focused Physical Examination” in the Clinical Nutrition Week 2015).

According to Marie Mahon, RD, LD “If we do not elevate our level of practice to include the NFPE, nutrition-specific problems will be overlooked and left unidentified and untreated”.

Link to the article:
 http://www.cnmdpg.org/docs/Newsletters/Newsletter%20Spring%202014.pdf

A.K.A

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