Aim and Content

The course is intended to provide an introduction to and basic knowledge about important general factors relating to the profession of clinical nutritionist:

The structure of the health service, relevant laws and regulations, national and international clinical nutrition associations, evidence-based practice and diet assessment methods.

Relevant disease mechanisms: Inflammation, trauma, reparative processes, tumour biology, environmental damage, starvation and malnutrition, intolerance and food allergies.

Nutrition for the sick: nutrition status screening, food and diet in hospital, special diets, dietary supplements, enteral nutrition, parenteral nutrition.

Learning Outcomes

After completing the course, the students should be capable of:

Knowledge

• Describing fundamental pathophysiological mechanisms relating to inflammation, traumatology and reparative processes in tissue and explain the use of diagnostic and therapeutic markers
• Explaining the structure of the Norwegian health service, including relevant national governing documents of relevance to the area of clinical nutrition
• Giving an overview of the national and international clinical nutrition associations and the profession of clinical nutritionist
• Describing a clinical nutritionist's duties, responsibility and role in the health service
• Describing an adequate nutritional status assessment and various nutritional screening tools
• Describing guidelines for the prevention and treatment of malnutrition
• Describing the range of nutritional treatment measures and the indications for their use

Skills:

• Writing a patient record note
• Planning and calculate the nutritional value of individual and institutional food using nutrition software
• Identifying individuals' needs for nutritional treatment and their specific nutritional needs
• Planning and carrying out nutritional treatment and provide guidance

Competence:

• Guiding health personnel in screening and nutrition registration
• Disseminating knowledge to, communicate and cooperate with different groups of professionals as well as patients

Course offered (semester)

Autumn

Course Unit Level

Master

Department

Institute of Medicine

Pre-requirements

Bachelor's degree in human nutrition

Teaching Methods

Lectures, clinical demonstrations, patient interviews, group work

Compulsory Requirements

Group work, ward duty, outpatient clinic duty, clinical demonstrations, a thesis and exam are all compulsory.

Assessment methods

Four-hour written exam. Compulsory thesis

Grading Scale

Grading scale A-F

Course Unit Evaluation

Written evaluation on My Space/Mi side