PATIENTS REPORT POSITIVE NUTRITION COUNSELING OUTCOMES

Objective Assess outcomes of patient nutrition counseling. Design A de scriptive study based on the results of a telephone interview performe d 2 to 8 weeks after counseling. Subjects/setting Subjects were 400 ad ult patients referred for nutrition counseling at 2 academic health ce nters. Of these, 274 patients received nutrition counseling during hos pitalization and 126 as outpatients. Statistical analysis Descriptive statistics were used to summarize data and the Mann-Whitney U statisti c and logistic regressions were used to test significant differences ( P<.05) between inpatient and outpatient counseling outcomes. Results M ost patients (83%) gave a partial or full description of their diet mo difications and 79% had a moderate or good understanding of their diet . Most patients reported that the dietitian's advice was suited to the ir special needs (88%) and that they knew what to eat (83%). A majorit y (62%) had made dietary changes, but 17% said they had had trouble ch anging their diets as suggested. After talking with a dietitian, 57% f elt better emotionally, 37% felt better physically, 64% felt in contro l of their condition, and 43% noticed improved health indicators. Init ial analysis indicated that outpatients reported better outcomes than inpatients; further analysis showed that these differences could be at tributed to younger ages among the outpatient sample. Applications/con clusions Patient nutrition counseling has positive outcomes. Therefore , key counseling points should be introduced or reinforced in inpatien t settings, in conjunction with multiple-session protocols during the pre- and/or posthospitalization continuum of care. Dietitians, manager s, administrators, and credentialing agencies should work together to secure and promote the necessary physical, personnel, and financial re sources to make this happen.