Building the Structure of Dietetics Practice

Abstract

Writing in September’s President’s Page, and speaking in October at the Opening Session of ADA’s Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo, I talked about ways in which the American Dietetic Association is committed to being indispensable to all members. I gave many examples in St Louis of ADA’s indispensability; however, none is more important to our future than full implementation by our members and by our profession of evidence-based practice, standardized language for the dietetics profession, and ADA’s Nutrition Care Process and Model. This is nothing less than the structure upon which we must build all future dietetics practice. I’m not going to delve into details of everything ADA, our members, and our Headquarters team are doing to create this structure. Such a list—while impressive—would be far too long for this space. Here are a few highlights: •During the past year, ADA appointed an Evidence-Based Practice Committee to oversee development of guides for practice and evidence analysis projects.•We have developed and funded a 5-year effort to support evidence-based practice. This is being incorporated throughout ADA’s program of work: building evidence-based practice skills into education curricula; assisting members with development of practice skills; and building evidence-based guidelines and the Nutrition Care Process and Model into all practice materials, publications, and training.•The House of Delegates has approved Nutrition Diagnostic Terms, created for the diagnosis component of the Nutrition Care Process, plus a process for updating and maintaining these terms in the future. The new Nutrition Care Process/Standardized Language Committee will oversee their continued refinement and implementation.•ADA’s Peer Network for Nutrition Diagnosis was created to enable members with expertise in the Nutrition Care Process to assist members in their areas. More than 200 dietetics professionals expressed interest in becoming part of the network, and 17 members have been invited to join the network’s “first wave.”•ADA’s online Evidence Analysis Library recently gained a new addition—the Hyperlipidemia Guidelines, whose recommendations fit in the nutrition intervention component of the Nutrition Care Process and Model. With 20 new evidence-based projects in the works, the Evidence Analysis Library will soon add additional disease-specific guidelines to its index.•ADA has been conducting training for members in evidence analysis and evidence-based grading.•More than 400 members have enrolled in ADA’s Dietetics Practice-Based Research Network, improving their practice and delivery of services through outcomes-based research in day-to-day settings.•ADA’s first Position Paper to be developed based on evidence-based analysis, on pediatric weight management, is being finalized. A second Position utilizing evidence-based analysis, on nutrition and athletic performance, is being developed with Dietitians of Canada and the American College of Sports Medicine. In addition, the Association Positions Committee is considering more evidence-based ADA Positions.•The October Journal contains the latest on registered dietitians’ perceptions and knowledge of evidence-based practice (p 1574) and on implementation of the Nutrition Care Process in health-care facilities (p 1582). Remarkable progress has been made in the 2 years since ADA committed to an evidence-based approach to diagnosis, intervention, and outcomes. As we begin putting the Nutrition Care Process into use and institutions begin using it, the key is implementation … from education and internships through adoption by practitioners and acceptance by health-care facilities. Educators can teach evidence-based practice and the Nutrition Care Process to dietetics students, but they must be supported and used at the practice level. ADA members who serve as clinical nutrition managers must take the lead in embracing the Nutrition Care Process and incorporating it into their institution’s daily operations. The pre-FNCE Clinical Nutrition Managers’ Nutrition Care Process Symposium offered attendees outstanding tools and ideas for incorporating the process into their systems. And more sessions, workshops, Webinars, and other professional development activities are being planned for you. Full implementation of standardized language and the Nutrition Care Process and Model is expected to take about 10 years. At that point, the dietetics profession truly will be distinguished for delivering the highest quality science-based nutrition care with effective and measurable outcomes. ADA is working hard to provide you with the tools to prove conclusively our value and to quantify our successes—it will be up to you—to all of us—to put these tools into action.