Abstract
BackgroundDuring the global COVID‐19 pandemic, UK dietitians have delivered the best care to help patients recover from the infection. The present study examined the development and evaluation of care pathways to manage nutritional care of patients following COVID‐19 infection prior to and after discharge.MethodsRegistered UK dietitians completed an online questionnaire comprising 26 questions about the development of a pathway, its use, evaluation and training needs.ResultsOf 57 responses from organisations, 37 (65%) were involved in the planning/management of nutritional care. Only 19 responses had a new or adapted COVID‐19 pathway. Of these, 74% reported involvement of dietetic services, 47% reported > 1 eligibility criteria for pathway inclusion and 53% accepted all positive or suspected cases. All respondents used nutritional screening, first‐line dietary advice (food first) and referral for further advice and monitoring. Weight and food intake were the most used outcome measure. All pathways addressed symptoms related to nutrition, with the most common being weight loss with poor appetite, not being hungry and skipping meals in 84% of pathways. Over half of respondents (54%) planned to evaluate their pathway and 83% reported that they were ‘very or reasonably confident’ in their team's nutritional management of COVID‐19. Less than half (42%) reported on training needs.ConclusionsDespite challenges encountered, pathways were developed and implemented. Dietitians had adapted to new ways of working to manage nutritional care in patients prior to and after discharge from hospital following COVID‐19 infection. Further work is needed to develop strategies for evaluation of their impact.
Highlights
Nutrition is a crucial part of the recovery process for all patients with COVID-19, for those who have experienced cardiac or pulmonary complications, as well as for cases where frailty, sarcopenia and malnutrition have developed or been exacerbated.[1]
National Health Service (NHS) England recognises the role of the dietitian in ensuring adequate nutrition and hydration to prevent malnutrition in patients following hospital discharge in their report ‘After-Care Needs of Inpatients Recovering from COVID-19’
The European Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (ESPEN) has produced clinical guidance to inform healthcare rehabilitation pathways to ensure that nutrition is considered at every stage of the patient's journey.[4]
Summary
Nutrition is a crucial part of the recovery process for all patients with COVID-19, for those who have experienced cardiac or pulmonary complications, as well as for cases where frailty, sarcopenia and malnutrition have developed or been exacerbated.[1]. Care pathways have been used in the NHS from the mid to late 1990 s onwards and are regarded mechanisms for ensuring patient safety, equity in the quality of treatment, optimal use of resources, and a way to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the care process by integration They are designed to be a helpful tool for routing patients through the system and are regarded as patient-centred by allowing individualisation. The present study examined the development and evaluation of care pathways to manage nutritional care of patients following COVID-19 infection prior to and after discharge. Dietitians had adapted to new ways of working to manage nutritional care in patients prior to and after discharge from hospital following COVID-19 infection. Further work is needed to develop strategies for evaluation of their impact
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
