By Christine Graf
At Saratoga Hospital, registered dietitians (RD) serve as an integral part of the treatment team. Credentialed healthcare professionals, dietitians apply their knowledge of nutrition to develop individualized dietary strategies, ones designed to meet the unique needs of each patient.
Lisa Hodgson, the hospital’s clinical nutrition manager, is responsible for a staff of 16 registered dietitians. “I oversee a team of dietitians—an inpatient team, and an outpatient team that works in primary care. We also have dietitians that work in our bariatric surgery and weight loss program as well as in our endocrinology office,” said Hodgson, a clinical registered dietitian, certified dietitian nutritionist, and certified diabetes educator who has been working at Saratoga Hospital for 17 years.
On the inpatient side, RDs work with hospitalized patients with conditions that may be impacted by their nutrition status. Inpatient dietitians are also responsible for patients who require tube feedings or other more complex interventions.
On the outpatient side, dietitians work with patients referred by their primary care doctors.
“Maybe you have newly diagnosed diabetes or high blood pressure or high cholesterol or whatever it may be,” said Hodgson, noting that the hospital has dietitians in all nine of its primary care offices to work with referred patients.
Dietitians working in the hospital’s bariatric center work with patients who are candidates for bariatric surgery.
“A person has to go through a process to become a patient of the practice, and they would see the dietician as part of that program,” said Hodgson. “That would be before surgery, after surgery, and annually from there on out.”
The dietitians working with patients in the hospital’s endocrinology practice have additional certification in diabetes education. They also specialize in working with patients with thyroid conditions.
Patients must receive a referral in order to utilize nutrition services. “That is separate from an insurance referral,” explained Hodgson.
According to Hodgson, some patients are more receptive than others to following the nutritional guidance provided by their dietician.
“People react every way you can imagine. It depends on the person and the day, but I think a lot of the attitude is set by the way the provider presents it to the person. So, if it’s presented as an important part of preventing disease or helping you live a better, longer life, that makes a big difference. It’s helpful if the dietician is seen as being part of the healthcare team,” she said.
“We also don’t pressure anyone to do something they aren’t ready to do,” she added.
When asked about basic nutrition guidelines for those interested in eating a healthy diet, Hodgson recommends reading up on “The Healthy Plate,” a guide that can be used to create healthy, balanced meals. A typical Healthy Plate diet includes 50 percent fruits and vegetables, 25 percent whole grains, and 25 percent protein.
“When we work with patients, we work with evidence-based practice, individualizing the general recommendations to meet the needs of each person,” she said. “We talk about eating more fruits and vegetables and whole grains, eating smaller portions throughout the day, watching sodium intake, drinking more water, and moving more– all of those general guidelines that you hear about.”
Her team of registered dietitians develops plans that are highly individualized to the needs of each patient.
“That is critical,” said Hodgson. “Because not everyone is cookie cutter in terms of how they are living their lives. Our approach is to set up small goals that are achievable and measurable to people and to help support them as they try to reach those goals.”
Hodgson cautions people against getting their nutritional information from Tik Tok or other social media platforms.
“There’s a lot of misinformation out there that people are seeing on Tik Tok. If something sounds too good to be true it probably is,” she warned.
Hodgson also stressed that it is important for people to understand the difference between a RD and a nutritionist. Unlike nutritionists, RDs have earned degrees in the field (entry-level practice as an RD now requires a master’s degree), passed certification exams, and must complete continuing education requirements.
“Anyone can call themselves a nutritionist. When you get your information from a registered dietician, you are working with someone who has had education and training.”
As part of their work, dietitians look at more than just medical history. When conducting assessments, they ask questions intended to determine a person’s living situation.
“I can talk to somebody about eating fruits and vegetables all day long, and if they don’t have a safe roof over their head and food to put on their table for their children, it doesn’t matter what I’m telling them,” Hodgson said.
For that reason, she and her team direct patients to local food pantries and other resources to help fill those gaps.
According to Hodgson, she and her team also work with individuals who are prescribed weight loss medications.
“The weight loss medications have been out there for a long time, and some providers have been reluctant to use them. We believe they are one tool in the toolbox. They have been a great way for people to jump-start their weight loss efforts for those who have struggled with their weight for years.”
For those taking medications, dietitians work with them to develop healthy eating habits.
“The unfortunate part of reliance on these medications is that if you do not learn how to eat differently, you may gain the weight back if you stop taking the medication.