FoodMinds
2 weeks, community
My time at FoodMinds was a "left field" experience for me, especially after 10-weeks of clinicals. FoodMinds is a food and nutrition public relations agency that leverages strategic insight and registered dietitian expertise to produce the "next steps" for national and global companies. I had the chance to monitor food industry news/trends and inform client teams about relevant updates. Check out my blog-post about my first-time interaction with food marketing.
Core Skills Used: project management, review research studies/government regulations, nutrition analysis, company product juxtaposition
What I made: Webinar summary reports, Compiled food/nutrition national stakeholders report, Global organizations fact sheet, Competitor Analysis, 2020 Dietary Guidelines of America Meeting Report
Friends House
1 week, long-term care
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed my long-term care rotation. I enjoyed interacting with the residents and applying geriatric nutrition requirements to help the residents feel their best. By day 2 of my rotation, I was documenting in the facility EMR (PointClickCare). I conducted two, 30-minute nutrition presentations -- using a food bingo game and pairing it with sharing nutrition fun facts about each food.
Core Skills Used: public speaking, cultural competence, interpersonal communication, empathy, geriatric medical nutrition therapy, food safety
What I made: Two 30-minute nutrition presentations for residents, annual assessments, quarterly assessments
Fresenius Kidney Care
1 week, renal
A personal takeaway from my renal rotation was I am not phased by the site of blood. I was happy to learn that early on, since my first day on the dialysis floor. I had to the opportunity to interview patients-- gathering information for annual assessments and learning about their experience with dialysis. I educated patients on the importance, reasoning, and strategies to maintain adequate serum albumin levels. I became familiar with closely monitored lab values related to kidney failure and complications, specifically sodium, phosphorous, albumin, iron, and fluid.
Core Skills Used: public speaking, medical nutrition therapy, cultural competence, empathy, research, and self-learning, web-based design.
What I did: interacted with 5+ patients a day, created a low phosphorous fast food guide, created an education board on managing thirst,
University of Maryland's Food Supplement Nutrition Education Program
2 weeks, community
This rotation was a combination of working out of the FSNE state office in Columbia as well as helping with nutrition education at various elementary schools in the Baltimore area. It was fun interacting with kids and leading an educational piece ourselves. I had the opportunity to develop a meal planning calendar, marketing material for Text2BHealthy, and various Facebook and blog posts.
Core Skills Used: project management, professional writing, design, interpersonal communication, public speaking, cultural competence.
What I made: Meal Planning Calendar, Text2BHealthy infographic, Social Media Content Calendar, Blog post
University of Maryland Campus Dining Sustainbaility
2 weeks, community & sustainability
Farm work + farmer market + menu analysis + project development = our work at campus sustainability. Interacting with food through the lens of sustainable efforts was a valuable experience. It was a familiar niche of nutrition since my past work with my campus dining sustanbiltiy team. I had the opportunity to interact with the Menus of Change Self Assessment Tool in order to identify areas of strength and improvement for campus dining as a whole.
Core Skills Used: R&D, food sustainability knowledge, teamwork time-management, project development/management.
What I made: Terp Farm Featured Item, completed Self-Assessment for foods and ingredients
Manna Food Center
2 weeks, community
Core Skills Used: attention to detail, critical thinking, food allergen identification, customer service, nutrition education, culinary, food safety
What I did: collected items for special boxes like diabetes, vegan, vegetarian etc. wrote blog posts, participated in community meetings, educated a diverse population on vegetable and fruits