The guest speaker on Nutrition for our Older Adults class was very informative. I learned a lot about how important it is to make sure individuals in the hospital are getting enough calories for them to heal properly and that it is quite common for patients to be malnourished. We also learned that if we work at a hospital, we should get to know the registered dietitian on our floor so we are able to work with them to ensure our clients are getting the nutrition they need.
One intervention that occupational therapists can do with an individual in regards to nutrition is to educate the client on how to check nutrition facts while grocery shopping. You could start by bringing in food boxes to the clinic or client's home to first go over what is on nutrition facts and how to make sense of it. After the client understands the nutrition facts, the OT and client could go to a grocery store and assess their ability to grocery shop independently while also checking the nutrition facts.
A group intervention that could be done by an occupational therapist that relates to nutrition is a support group for individuals with type two diabetes and how to manage nutrition for these individuals. During the group the OT and group members can discuss proper nutrition for diabetics. The OT may also want to have a registered dietician present for the meeting, but allow the group members to have plenty of discussion amongst themselves.
While it is not commonly thought of as an area that is within the scope of practice for occupational therapists, nutrition is within our scope of practice to an extent. Making sure you know a registered dietitian in your area can be helpful for both you and your clients. This will give you a resource to gain more knowledge as well as someone you can refer clients to for nutritional needs.
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