Aging & Nutrition

The key takeaways for me:

1) Our services cannot only exist when our patient in the facility, but their recovery once they leave our care is also our responsibility. Often, facilities are worried with getting clients in and out safely without a readmission. However, we cannot have such high hopes without giving clients the tools they need to promote their health after discharge.

2) I learned the value a dietitian brings to a healthcare team in a lot of different settings and populations. Primarily with older adults, I think it is essential to have them as a part of my clients' care to ensure they have all of the resources they'll need to succeed. Just as if we'd refer a client to an eye specialist for a suspected a vision deficit, we should include a dietitian if we suspect food insecurity or malnutrition.

3) It takes around double the amount of calorie intake post-ICU discharge to fully recover from the breakdown the body experiences while in the hospital. We need to educate our clients on the needs of their bodies after a trauma, especially in the hypermetabolic or catabolic states they can experience while in a hospital. We should advocate for dietitians and express their value in an adequate nutrition's ability to reduce a hospital stay by 2 days!

4) In nutrition, early intervention is key! As soon as we observe signs of malnutrition, we should contact a dietitian to be involved.

Interventions

Individual: If I had just been given an order for OT for a client who has CHF and diagnosed with malnutrition, I think a cooking activity would be ideal. We would review the calorie and protein intake their dietitian recommended for them and discuss what items would be sufficient for them to eat. Sometimes I think people don't eat healthy because they're simply unaware of what foods suffice. We could go into their kitchen and begin cooking a full meal for their lunch consisting of a heart healthy, nutritious meal. After we eat, we could clean up the kitchen and discuss plans for breakfast meals, dinner, or snacks in the future. With this intervention I am encompassing several occupations including: meal preparation, home maintenance, eating, feeding, and safety.

Group: Education, education, education! If I were the group leader of a group consisting of elderly individuals, I think it would be crucial to have a group about proper health and nutrition. Often, as a society we tend to blame certain processes on aging when actually, we could provide education on what aging actually consists of. The population of elder adults should consume more protein as they age because the process of protein synthesis is slowing in their body. Without protein, they cannot sustain lean body mass (LBM). Without LBM, our clients can become frail and more susceptible to fractures and falls. They can also experience an increased difficulty with ADLs, increase in infection or illness, and decreased independence through malnutrition. It is our job to educate our clients on the normal process of aging, i.e. sarcopenia, vs. the abnormal process, i.e. malnutrition. I would come up with an activity where I would ask the group to list what they usually ate or what they think they should be eating. We could draw the items or make a list. From there, I'd want to discuss any similarities and clear the air on any misconceptions. Ideally, the group would take away that if they care for their nutrition and remain active, they can likely prevent skin breakdown, being at a long-term care facility, chronic illness, etc. From here, I think a great next group would be an active group focusing on safe endurance exercises to promote cardiovascular health!