Monday, April 1, 2013
DI Matching Ordering
You can and should reevaluate your preferences after
the interviews. You rank order each of
the programs that you apply to initially and then after interviews are
conducted you can log on and change your rankings if you desire. I thought I had my six choices pretty well
set until interviews. Following my last
interview, I logged on and moved my sixth choice to my third choice which then
bumped my original third, fourth and fifth choices down a spot. For me, the interview was very insightful and
I felt like it went really well and that I would truly enjoy that school’s
program and that’s why I made the change.
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
DND Digital Preferences
1
You can and should reevaluate your preferences after
the interviews. You rank order each of
the programs that you apply to initially and then after interviews are
conducted you can log on and change your rankings if you desire. I thought I had my six choices pretty well
set until interviews. Following my last
interview, I logged on and moved my sixth choice to my third choice which then
bumped my original third, fourth and fifth choices down a spot. For me, the interview was very insightful and
I felt like it went really well and that I would truly enjoy that school’s
program and that’s why I made the change. I encourage you to really think about the programs and your potential fit there after interviews and make changes if necessary.
I
Thursday, January 24, 2013
Clinical Rotation
I'm almost two weeks into my clinical rotation (and officially half way through my internship program!) and I must admit that I'm enjoying it a lot more than I thought I would. Going in I had a a lot of fears about clinical....it's just so different than anything I've done in the past and it seemed to be so much more "critical" than any of the other nutrition environments. However, I'm really enjoying the challenge. It's a lot of work, definitely more than any other rotation so far. I'm putting in 7-8 hour days in the hospital and then coming home and doing lots of reading on different disease states. It's exhausting, I'm so ready for the weekend by the time Friday rolls around but I'm learning a lot and I've already noticed some progress in my abilities in terms of talking with and assessing my patients.
I'm at a great hospital with some really great dietitians that know their stuff but are also really trusting me and pushing me to expand my skills and to use my clinical judgement. I'm seeing about 3 patients a day currently. I chart on the patient after my visit and my assessment and then I go through the note with one of the dietitians and she signs off on it. It's a busy environment and the days go by super quickly, I'm sure that it will be over before I know it!
I'm at a great hospital with some really great dietitians that know their stuff but are also really trusting me and pushing me to expand my skills and to use my clinical judgement. I'm seeing about 3 patients a day currently. I chart on the patient after my visit and my assessment and then I go through the note with one of the dietitians and she signs off on it. It's a busy environment and the days go by super quickly, I'm sure that it will be over before I know it!
Thursday, January 17, 2013
Dietetic Internship Scholarships!
I know that many of you are really busy pulling everything together for the internship application deadline which is less than a month away (less than two weeks for some programs!) but don't forget to take some time to apply for scholarships from the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. The deadline for the scholarships is also February 15th so make sure you don't let it pass you by! I didn't find out about this opportunity until the deadline had passed and I wish that I knew about it at this point. From what I understand the Academy is pretty generous so it sounds like it's worth the extra time, at least one of my fellow interns received some money to help cover the internship costs. Here's a link directly to the application: http://www.eatright.org/foundation/scholarships/
Good luck and hang in there!
Good luck and hang in there!
Friday, December 14, 2012
Lessons Learned
You know that saying that you don't appreciate what you've got until it's gone, well it's true even when it comes to the dietetic internship.
To be honest, I wasn't much of a fan of food service during my rotation. It just wasn't really my thing, I couldn't see myself doing it for the rest of my life because I felt so removed from the clientele. On top of that, my food service director was constantly busy running from one meeting to the next and dealing with one personnel issue or another. To be fair she included me when she could and she had warned me about this up front and had told me that I would have to be really independent and self directed. I didn't think that this would be a problem but I guess I never really knew what she thought about my work and my progress as the internship went on and that concerned me. I would wonder if I was doing ok, if they even knew I was there or was I just the pesky intern that was in the way?
Honestly, there were days that I couldn't wait to get back to my main site with my other fellow interns. But, today was my last day of food service and it was probably the best day of the entire rotation. You see the pressure to perform was gone. I had my evaluation early on in the day and it went really well. I had a really honest, open conversation with my preceptor and she gave me a lot of complements and feedback (which I think is what I was looking for all along). It took sitting through my evaluation to realize just how much I had learned; and it was then that I realized that most of the lessons were not from doing but rather from observing.
After my evaluation I had an opportunity to watch one of the ladies in the office's episode on Chopped. She was one of the contestants on the second lunch ladies challenge and it was beautiful. She is so invested in what she does and she wants so badly to make a difference. I'll admit it, I cried a couple of times during the episode. I was moved. This is why I went into this field, to educate people and to give them the tools to make healthier choices. That's all she wanted to do, she just took a different approach in which to do it.
This is what I love, what I crave, what I want so badly.....to be surrounded by is people who have a passion for what they do and it might have taken me until today to realize that I was surrounded by several people with this passion. And even if their passion is not my passion I can certainly respect what they do. Sure they might be busy, they might have hectic lives and they might not always have the time to give the eager intern with the bright ideas the kind of feedback that she would like to have but they are so invested in what they do and it's admirable.
Several of them even made time to take me out to dinner tonight and it was great. I didn't know how much I had connected with these people until it was time to say goodbye. Even if I don't pursue a career in foodservice; I hope that I can stay connected and inspired by these women for a long time and I'm thankful for the opportunity to experience other areas of nutrition and dietetics and to get to interact with people who have a slight different passion than I do but who share my love for nutrition and health.
To be honest, I wasn't much of a fan of food service during my rotation. It just wasn't really my thing, I couldn't see myself doing it for the rest of my life because I felt so removed from the clientele. On top of that, my food service director was constantly busy running from one meeting to the next and dealing with one personnel issue or another. To be fair she included me when she could and she had warned me about this up front and had told me that I would have to be really independent and self directed. I didn't think that this would be a problem but I guess I never really knew what she thought about my work and my progress as the internship went on and that concerned me. I would wonder if I was doing ok, if they even knew I was there or was I just the pesky intern that was in the way?
Honestly, there were days that I couldn't wait to get back to my main site with my other fellow interns. But, today was my last day of food service and it was probably the best day of the entire rotation. You see the pressure to perform was gone. I had my evaluation early on in the day and it went really well. I had a really honest, open conversation with my preceptor and she gave me a lot of complements and feedback (which I think is what I was looking for all along). It took sitting through my evaluation to realize just how much I had learned; and it was then that I realized that most of the lessons were not from doing but rather from observing.
After my evaluation I had an opportunity to watch one of the ladies in the office's episode on Chopped. She was one of the contestants on the second lunch ladies challenge and it was beautiful. She is so invested in what she does and she wants so badly to make a difference. I'll admit it, I cried a couple of times during the episode. I was moved. This is why I went into this field, to educate people and to give them the tools to make healthier choices. That's all she wanted to do, she just took a different approach in which to do it.
This is what I love, what I crave, what I want so badly.....to be surrounded by is people who have a passion for what they do and it might have taken me until today to realize that I was surrounded by several people with this passion. And even if their passion is not my passion I can certainly respect what they do. Sure they might be busy, they might have hectic lives and they might not always have the time to give the eager intern with the bright ideas the kind of feedback that she would like to have but they are so invested in what they do and it's admirable.
Several of them even made time to take me out to dinner tonight and it was great. I didn't know how much I had connected with these people until it was time to say goodbye. Even if I don't pursue a career in foodservice; I hope that I can stay connected and inspired by these women for a long time and I'm thankful for the opportunity to experience other areas of nutrition and dietetics and to get to interact with people who have a slight different passion than I do but who share my love for nutrition and health.
Monday, December 10, 2012
Food Service
This week marks my last week in my school food service rotation. I must admit that I'm ready to get back to my main site for a couple weeks of community/administration and a full week off for Christmas! Then it's on to clinical. I can tell that I'm changing (or maybe just adapting to reality!) already because the thought of going to my clinical rotation used to scare me. At our clinical review session I was on the verge of tears and had to fight off having a very public meltdown. But after food service I'm so ready for clinical. Bring it on!
You see, I've found out that food service just really isn't my thing. I love kids and I love childhood nutrition, I also love school so by all accounts I should love food service but I don't. I don't hate it but I've found that I'm definitely not a food service dietitian. It's too far removed from the education piece and the client interaction. When I started this internship I really felt that I was a WIC dietitian deep down. I think that's where my heart is but I've been trying to be open minded and to get the most from each of my experiences. Ironically though, food service has just reminded me of how much I love the WIC population, the services the program provides and the client interaction. Don't get me wrong, I have a lot of respect for food service dietitians and directors and the work they do (especially given the new meal pattern requirements) but there is another side to their job that is too involved with personnel management. My rotation is in a district with 300+ food service employees and the personnel and discipline issues have been overwhelming at times. Something is always going on at some school and the directors day is often interrupted as something comes up. I like variety and knowing that every day is different but it weighs too heavily on me to have to constantly be writing up an employee or documenting an incident. I just want to teach nutrition to kids and families.
I'm glad that I had this experience and I'm glad that food service was my first outside rotation. It was a great way to get out and experience a new side of dietetics but as I said before I'm so ready for a break (I plan to do as little as possible during my week off!) and for a new rotation. I also miss seeing my fellow interns on a daily basis and can't wait to be back in our cubes again! :)
You see, I've found out that food service just really isn't my thing. I love kids and I love childhood nutrition, I also love school so by all accounts I should love food service but I don't. I don't hate it but I've found that I'm definitely not a food service dietitian. It's too far removed from the education piece and the client interaction. When I started this internship I really felt that I was a WIC dietitian deep down. I think that's where my heart is but I've been trying to be open minded and to get the most from each of my experiences. Ironically though, food service has just reminded me of how much I love the WIC population, the services the program provides and the client interaction. Don't get me wrong, I have a lot of respect for food service dietitians and directors and the work they do (especially given the new meal pattern requirements) but there is another side to their job that is too involved with personnel management. My rotation is in a district with 300+ food service employees and the personnel and discipline issues have been overwhelming at times. Something is always going on at some school and the directors day is often interrupted as something comes up. I like variety and knowing that every day is different but it weighs too heavily on me to have to constantly be writing up an employee or documenting an incident. I just want to teach nutrition to kids and families.
I'm glad that I had this experience and I'm glad that food service was my first outside rotation. It was a great way to get out and experience a new side of dietetics but as I said before I'm so ready for a break (I plan to do as little as possible during my week off!) and for a new rotation. I also miss seeing my fellow interns on a daily basis and can't wait to be back in our cubes again! :)
Friday, November 2, 2012
One Quarter Finished!
It's hard to believe it, but I'm done with the first 12 weeks of my 46 week internship. Whew! In general, it feels like it is going by so fast. Next week I start my food service rotation and I can't wait. We have had a lot of "office time" spent just working our way through assignments over the last two weeks and I'm starting to get really tired of spending 10 hours a day in an office chair and then in the car commuting. My posture is seriously suffering! I'm ready for a change and a chance to be out and about on my feet.
It's been a rough month or so for me emotionally and I must say that some things have come up in my personal life along the way (during the internship) that have been challenging and I wasn't really prepared to deal with that on top of the stress of the internship. I will say that I don't think that it really affected my performance at the internship but it has really affected my emotional state and my behaviors outside of it. There was a kidnapping/murder in my childhood (and current) neighborhood that went unsolved for several weeks and I was really surprised at how much that rattled my sense of security. I became obsessed about checking the news for updates even when I knew that watching all the reports was likely adding to my anxiety. The great part of watching all of this news coverage though was that it continually reinforced my decision to not follow my first career path (broadcast news) and to pursue my current one...dietetics! It was reassuring to finally KNOW in my heart and be able to internalize that I'm in the right place professionally.
Then we had an unexpected late night phone call that kept my husband and I up really late one night last week which was also somewhat emotionally draining the next day. Luckily, both of these events are in the past now and I'm feeling much better about everything now that the murderer has been caught. But I will say that this has definitely been the biggest challenge for me thus far with balancing the "interruptions" in my personal life and sorting through those emotions while still performing at my best on a daily basis. Maybe it's because I'm a planner and I had thought through everything else. I had prepared myself for the commute, for the financial aspects of having to give up my paying job and pay $6,000 of tuition without student loans but I never thought about what "else" might be going on around me outside of work.
I had a meeting with my internship director today to discuss my progress so far and it went extremely well. It was great to sit down with her and talk about how everything was going and it was reassuring to get some positive feedback. I'm in a great place now though and now that I'm already a quarter of the way through, I'm ready to keep going and to keep experiencing new opportunities and areas of dietetics.
It's been a rough month or so for me emotionally and I must say that some things have come up in my personal life along the way (during the internship) that have been challenging and I wasn't really prepared to deal with that on top of the stress of the internship. I will say that I don't think that it really affected my performance at the internship but it has really affected my emotional state and my behaviors outside of it. There was a kidnapping/murder in my childhood (and current) neighborhood that went unsolved for several weeks and I was really surprised at how much that rattled my sense of security. I became obsessed about checking the news for updates even when I knew that watching all the reports was likely adding to my anxiety. The great part of watching all of this news coverage though was that it continually reinforced my decision to not follow my first career path (broadcast news) and to pursue my current one...dietetics! It was reassuring to finally KNOW in my heart and be able to internalize that I'm in the right place professionally.
Then we had an unexpected late night phone call that kept my husband and I up really late one night last week which was also somewhat emotionally draining the next day. Luckily, both of these events are in the past now and I'm feeling much better about everything now that the murderer has been caught. But I will say that this has definitely been the biggest challenge for me thus far with balancing the "interruptions" in my personal life and sorting through those emotions while still performing at my best on a daily basis. Maybe it's because I'm a planner and I had thought through everything else. I had prepared myself for the commute, for the financial aspects of having to give up my paying job and pay $6,000 of tuition without student loans but I never thought about what "else" might be going on around me outside of work.
I had a meeting with my internship director today to discuss my progress so far and it went extremely well. It was great to sit down with her and talk about how everything was going and it was reassuring to get some positive feedback. I'm in a great place now though and now that I'm already a quarter of the way through, I'm ready to keep going and to keep experiencing new opportunities and areas of dietetics.
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