Job Description

Posting number: 10326

Department: Health Center

Division: ADMIN DIETARY

Job classification: Registered Dietitian

Posting type: Open

Categories: Food Services

Summary

Incumbent works under the direction of the Assistant Director of Food Service or designee, assessing, developing, and implementing nutritional plans of care for Douglas County Health Center (DCHC) residents, Community Mental Health Center (CMHC) patients, and Youth Center (DCYC) detainees.

Examples of duties

• Develop, complete, and implement Minimum Data Sets (MDS), Care Area Assessment (CAA), and evidence-based care plans tailored for resident/patient specific needs and goals adhering to policies and procedures of Food Service and DCHC.
• Establish and maintain effective work relationships with clients, supervisors, County employees, elected officials, attorneys, law enforcement, judges, other agencies, and the public.
• Comply with Civil Service Rules, collective bargaining agreements, County policies, department policies and laws to create a cooperative, safe, respectful and quality work environment.
• Determine nutrient and dietary needs and write diet orders with physician’s approval.
• Prescribe nutrition interventions (e.g., therapeutic diets, oral nutritional supplements, enteral feeding regimens), based on clinical status and interdisciplinary care goals.
• Evaluate weight trends, intake patterns, and clinical indicators identifying malnutrition risk, dehydration risk and nutrition-related decline requiring intervention.
• Monitor nutritional risk (e.g., calculate nutritional content, record information).
• Evaluate and monitor the effectiveness and outcomes of medical nutrition therapy intervention.
• Provide evidence-based medical nutrition therapy for individuals with a broad spectrum of disease states, evaluating clinical status, lab values, medication interactions, and nutrition risk factors to guide individualized care planning.
• Consult with members of the healthcare team regarding resident/patient care.
• Provide nutritional information for regular/modified diets to residents, patients, and department stakeholders.
• Analyze menus and calculate nutrient content supporting recipe revision and menu planning.
• Contact residents during meal service observing acceptance and conformance of diet and provide nutritional education.
• Develop, schedule and conduct department education improving dietary staff skills ensuring compliance with established rules and regulations.
• Maintain resident/patient records and document nutrition intervention.
• Serve as a nutrition expert, proving technical guidance, direction and staff development.
• Maintain job knowledge and skills (e.g., research, meetings, webinars, seminars, conferences, continuing education).
• Participate in quality assessment activities.
• Serve as a member of the Interdisciplinary Care Plan team.
• Serve on committees.
• Report to assigned work location with regular, consistent attendance.
• Perform other duties as assigned and directed.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or advanced degree from an accredited university or college in Food and Nutrition or Dietetics required.
• One (1) year of clinical dietetic/nutritional experience required.
• Registered by the Commission on Dietetic Registration of the American Dietetic Association required.
• Obtain professional development as required by the Commission of Dietetic Registration and maintain throughout employment required.
• Obtain a Medical Nutrition Therapist License from the State of Nebraska within one (1) year of hire and maintain throughout employment required.
• Experience with MDS, CAA, and long-term care plans preferred.
• Completion of a pre-employment criminal and licensure record check and conditional offer drug screen required.

Supplemental information

• The physical demands and work environment characteristics described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
• Work performed in an office setting within a long-term care facility. Noise level is usually moderate. Work typically performed during standard day-shift hours; however, schedule may vary (e.g., days, weekends, overtime/extra hours, holidays, emergency call in). Work may be stressful when dealing with time constraints, multiple/changing priorities, limited resources and uncooperative/irate individuals.
• Work requires some physical activity including extended periods of walking, standing, frequent reaching, and occasional climbing, balancing, kneeling, crouching and bending. Work also requires the ability to frequently lift and/or carry objects weighing up to 10 pounds and occasionally up to 25 pounds.
• Required sensory abilities include vision, hearing and touch. Visual abilities, correctable to normal ranges, include close, distance and color vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus. Communication abilities include the ability to talk and hear within normal ranges. Incumbent must possess the hand-eye coordination and manual dexterity necessary to operate computers and other equipment.