Our Role & Services

Who we are:

As defined in the Dietetics Act, 1991, "the practice of dietetics is the assessment of nutrition and nutritional concerns and the treatment and prevention of nutrition related disorders by nutritional means". The practice of dietetics in Ontario is regulated by the College of Dietitians of Ontario (CDO) under the Regulated Health Professions Act (RHPA) and the Ontario Dietetics Act. Only the Registered Dietitian has 'therapeutic or nutritional interventions' within the scope of the practice.

Our services:

The Department of Clinical Nutrition at London Health Sciences Centre provides nutrition counselling to both inpatients and outpatients. Clinical Nutrition Services are provided through a program-based patient care model. The programs that have Clinical Dietitians and Clinical Dietetic Assistants as members of the interdisciplinary team include:

• Cardiac Care
• Women's Care
• Children's Care
• Mental Health
• Orthopaedics
• Medical Care including Family Medicine and Palliative Care
• Neurology
• Critical Care
• Renal Care
• Surgical Care
• Multi-organ Transplant Service
• Oncology Care

Our role:

The Clinical Dietitian provides leadership in the management of medical nutritional therapy to ensure that patients and their families receive optimal and appropriate nutrition care and education. Responsibilities include the assessment of the nutritional status of patients with a condition, illness or injury that puts them at nutritional risk.

Through the integration and application of the sciences of biology, pathology, food and nutrition dietitians are able to create strategies for optimal nutrition. Nutrition intervention modalities to manage patients' conditions include the following:

• Diet modification/education.
  
  
• Specialized nutrition therapies including nutrition supplements
  1. Enteral nutrition delivered via tube feeding.
  2. Parenteral nutrition delivered via intravenous infusion.

A Clinical Dietetic Assistant assists in the nutritional management of patients, responsible for assessing, planning, implementing and evaluating nutrition care plans for patients on specified therapeutic diets and acts under the direct supervision of the Registered dietitian. The Dietetic Assistant also acts as a liaison between Clinical Nutrition and Patient Food Services