DIETETIC INTERNSHIP
5 weeks
FOOD SERVICE MANAGEMENT ROTATION
I completed this rotation at St. Mary's Hospital in Grand Junction, CO. This site is the largest hospital between Denver and Salt Lake City with 310 beds. I worked closely alongside the director of patient services, the executive chef and the retail services manager to learn all of the roles of the foodservice department. I provided staff relief in patient services, retail and food production.
16 weeks
CLINICAL ROTATION
I completed my clinical rotation also at St. Mary's Hospital. I provided education, practiced MNT and documented in the EMR using Epic. I made recommendations for enteral and parenteral nutrition support and picked appropriate formulas. I provided staff relief for clinical dietitians and saw anywhere from 7-10 patients daily. I enjoyed my 4 weeks spent in the ICU most because I found the severity of illness interesting and that my efforts as a clinical dietitian did not go unrecognized when nourishing patients with nutrition support.
5 weeks
COMMUNITY ROTATION
I gained experience in multiple out-patient settings during my community rotation. I familiarized myself with food and nutrition programs that address food insecurity when I volunteered at the Food Bank of the Rockies. I provided nutrition counseling via Telehealth for bariatric candidates and people with diabetes. I displayed creativity when designing informative handouts for populations across the lifespan. My strong social and interpersonal skills allowed me to give many successful presentations to members of the Denver community.
6 weeks
SPECIALTY ROTATION: EATING DISORDER RECOVERY
This rotation sparked my interest in eating disorders. I got to work with the dietitians at EDCare Denver, an eating disorder recovery center that offers care at the PHP and IOP levels. EDCare Denver is also one of two eating disorder recovery programs that offers a specialized track for athletes. As a previous athlete who's interest in nutrition started from my sport, this is a population I relate to and want to work with. I spent a lot of time with the sports dietitian who taught me specific health consequences and implications of athletes with eating disorders.
