Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago provides superior pediatric care in a setting that offers the latest benefits and innovations in medical technology, research and family-friendly design. As the largest pediatric provider in the region with a 140-year legacy of excellence, kids and their families are at the center of all we do. Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago is ranked in all 10 specialties by the U.S. News & World Report.

General Summary:

Works with specialized patient populations and clinical care teams providing detailed nutrition counseling, nutrition care plans and recommendations for diet, tube feedings, parenteral nutrition, vitamins, nutrition-related medications, and more that impact nutritional status, growth and quality of life. Provides quality specialized nutrition care and education to patients and their families in both the inpatient and outpatient settings. Acts as a resource for staff members and provides guidance regarding nutrition care. Designs and develops educational materials for patients and their families. Precepts dietetic interns and develops learning modules. Plans, conducts and evaluates nutrition education programs and assists in program development, quality improvement initiatives, research, policies and procedure review and revisions.

This role focus on Gastrointestinal care.

Essential Job Functions:

Patient Care

• Evaluates patients' nutritional status by reviewing pertinent information obtained from the medical record, the patient/family, the medical team, external agencies, and medical rounds.

• Completes nutrition-focused physical exams when appropriate to further assess nutritional status.

• Evaluates and assesses patient response to specialized diet therapy through direct interview; calculating nutrient intake; monitoring growth trends, pertinent lab values, and tolerance of oral, enteral or parenteral feedings.

• Makes appropriate recommendations to the clinical team members regarding the nutritional management of the patients.

• Enters nutrition-related orders, with confirmation by the Licensed Independent Practitioner (LIP), such as therapeutic diets, nutrition supplements, and enteral nutrition.

• Provides parenteral nutrition recommendations for ordering by LIP. Reviews LIP orders as appropriate and recommends orders for enteral and parenteral feeding regimens as necessary.

• Collaborates with the clinical team, patient and their family, to develop a specialized nutrition care plan for the patient.

• Assists with discharge planning and possible arrangements for home care services.

• Provides extensive nutrition counseling to patients and their caregivers regarding specialty diet needs and issues relating to nutritional status.

• Documents all pertinent information in the Medical Record in accordance to policies and procedures.

• Provides outpatient nutrition counseling in the clinic setting.

Nutrition Education/Clinical Inquiry:

• Integrates evidenced-based guidelines into clinical practice.

• Maintains knowledge of current trends and developments in clinical nutrition and specialty area in order to enhance professional expertise by attending professional meetings, reading appropriate journals, etc.

• Provides staff development, in-services and internal presentations to dietitians, members of the medical team and newly hired clinical staff on the principles and applications of nutrition, diet and related procedures.

• Acts as a preceptor to student interns in pediatric nutrition care.

• Participates in community relations and external speaking events to promote service and education within the Lurie Children's community and beyond.

• Participates in data collection and looks for new trends to track/analyze for quality improvement studies.

• Participates in nutrition-related research opportunities as available.

Business:

• Performs job functions adhering to Lurie Children's service principles with customer service focus of innovation, service excellence and teamwork to provide the highest quality care and service to patients, families, co-workers and others.

• Participates in department-specific and hospital-wide committees and task forces.

• Makes recommendations regarding new policies and procedures related to nutrition as needed.

• Assists in the planning and implementation for Lurie Children's Annual Nutrition Conference.

• Maintains department documentation and productivity standards and practices effective time management.

• Other job functions as assigned.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Bachelor's degree from accredited university program required, Master's degree preferred.

• Minimum of 1 year clinical experience post completion of dietetic internship/supervised practice required.

• Pediatric clinical experience preferred.

• Registered Dietitian (RD) issued by the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR) required.

• Illinois State Licensure as a registered dietitian (LDN) required. RD with confirmed Illinois license pending will be eligible to work for up to 6 months under supervision of a licensed RD.

• The following certifications are preferred: Certified Nutrition Support Clinician (CNSC), Certified Diabetes Educator (CDE), Pediatric/Renal/Oncology Specialty designated by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics

• Demonstrate skills in analyzing problems, making decisions, working independently, counseling and more.

• Intermediate computer skills in Microsoft Office Suite (Outlook, Word, Excel, etc.).

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in order to interact with patients, families and staff.

Education

Benefit Statement

For full time and part time employees who work 20 or more hours per week we offer a generous benefits package that includes:

Medical, dental and vision insurance

Employer paid group term life and disability

Employer contribution toward Health Savings Account

Flexible Spending Accounts

Paid Time Off (PTO), Paid Holidays and Paid Parental Leave

403(b) with a 5% employer match

Various voluntary benefits:

• Supplemental Life, AD&D and Disability

• Critical Illness, Accident and Hospital Indemnity coverage

• Tuition assistance

• Student loan servicing and support

• Adoption benefits

• Backup Childcare and Eldercare

• Employee Assistance Program, and other specialized behavioral health services and resources for employees and family members

• Discount on services at Lurie Children's facilities

• Discount purchasing program

There's a Place for You with Us

At Lurie Children's we embrace and celebrate diversity and equity in a serious way. We are committed to building a team with a variety of backgrounds, skills, and viewpoints - recognizing that diverse identities strengthen our workplace and the care we can provide to the Chicago community and beyond. We treat everyone fairly, appreciate differences, and make meaningful connections that foster belonging and allyship. This is a place where you can be your best, so we can give our best to the patients and families who trust us with their care.

Lurie Children's and its affiliatesare equal employment opportunity employers. We value diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, disability, marital status, pregnancy, protected veteran status, order of protection status, protected genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by law.

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