Nutrition Focused Physical Exam: An Essential Piece in Evaluation of Clinical Competency
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
Comments
Post a Comment