Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Proper Nutrition is Vital to Healing

Meet Melanie Williams, registered dietitian. She came to Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Fort Worth confident that she would make positive contributions to the culture of care. And in fact, she has.

When I asked her about her job and caring for her patients, she said: “With my rehab coverage I usually see patients over an extended period of time. Some of the most challenging patients are our patient's that come to us unable to swallow or eat orally.” One of Melanie’s strongest virtues is patience, which is demonstrated in her daily patient contact.


She went on to describe the process saying “as their swallow becomes stronger and they begin their diets I am faced with trying to adjust tube feeding and work with them on their meal plan to promote oral intake”. “In many cases these patients are weaned from tube feeding. At discharge they are eating most of their meals and meeting their nutritional needs. It is very rewarding to see these patients through their progress and work to help meet their needs.”
- Hugh Gittens
Executive chef at Texas Health Fort Worth

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