Curious what a day in the life of a Registered Dietitian with Envision Wellness looks like? Here’s an overview of what an Envision Wellness dietitian does before, during, and after seeing a new patient for prevention nutrition counseling or medical nutrition therapy. Preventative nutrition counseling with a dietitian focuses on promoting overall health, preventing chronic diseases, and optimizing nutrition through general dietary guidance and lifestyle recommendations. In contrast, medical nutrition therapy (MNT) is a more specialized, evidence-based approach used to manage specific medical conditions (e.g., diabetes, heart disease) through personalized nutrition interventions and ongoing monitoring.
Before a patient arrives for an initial evaluation your dietitian is reviewing the following:
Prevention Nutrition Counseling- review the patient’s diagnoses, insurance type and benefits, labs, most recent chart notes and Cronometer app.
Additional items reviewed for Medical Nutrition Therapy – review of the following to have a good understanding of the condition or disease we are providing medical nutrition therapy for: diagnostics or home readings (Ex: colonoscopy, CGM reports, home blood pressure reading), medications, specialist (Ex: cardiologist or nephrologist) consult notes.
What to expect during your office visit
Prevention Nutrition Counseling -Review Cronometer or food logs if they have them. Determine calorie and nutrient needs based on their age, gender, height, weight, BMI, activity level, health goals, and more. Assessment of various factors that influence eating and physical activity behaviors, including dietary intake, medical history, lifestyle habits, cooking ability, food access, cultural preferences, and psychosocial influences. Additional screeners may be used to evaluate nutritional quality of life, mindful eating behaviors, or the presence of disordered eating patterns. Use motivational interview techniques to determine what they would like help with, more education on, resources for, goal setting, etc. Determine frequency of follow-up based upon your diagnosis. Interventions could include: personalized nutrition education, meal planning strategies, behavior change coaching, and goal setting.
Additional Medical Nutrition Therapy- considerations for chronic conditions and how nutrition/exercise impacts them, treats their diagnosis or relieves the symptoms of it. Review of medication for possible drug nutrient interactions. Nutrient or food recommendations to meet therapy goals. Enteral nutrition calculations as needed. Specialized interventions such as therapeutic diets, symptom management, and monitoring of lab values.
What your dietitian is doing after the initial evaluation:
Charting what was discussed, material provided, nutrition recommendations, and creating/updating care plans based on the patient’s goals.
Entering surveys or questionnaires completed during the office visit
Completing nutrient assessment of paper food logs that will be reviewed at follow-up appointment
Coordinating with the referring provider which could include medication recommendations, additional labs, and nutrition therapy goals
Coordination with Envision Wellness nursing
Our dietitians see patients for a wide variety of diagnoses and needs, and they provide individualized care for each patient. They are currently accepting new patients! To learn more about them and the services they provide, please visit EnvisionWell.org.