Dieticians Assistant (#MDCZ05)

A class incumbent is responsible for assisting in the dietary assessment and nutritional care plan for patients.

A class incumbent reports to a technical supervisor and is responsible for assisting with the nutritional and dietary assessment and meal planning for patients. A class incumbent assists in the nutritional and dietary assessment of patients by recording patient information on their charts and attending the patient care conference where the patient's nutritional and dietary status are discussed. Further, a class incumbent reviews patient menu request for compliance with their diet specifications and assists with the preparation of menus by transcribing doctor's orders and making appropriate menu selections. Work includes advising food service personnel on the proper preparation and serving portions of patients' diets. Typical contacts are with the nursing staff, doctors and food service personnel concerning patients' nutritional and dietary needs.

Essential functions are fundamental, core functions common to all positions in the class series and are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all job duties for any one position in the class. Since class specifications are descriptive and not restrictive, incumbents can complete job duties of similar kind not specifically listed here. 

• Keeps diet cards current by recording patient admission, transfers, discharges and diet changes. Maintains manual or computerized files and records.
   
• Reviews patients' menu requests for compliance with their diet and makes necessary changes or adjustments as required.
   
• Prepares modified diet and regular food counts by calculating the number of patients on each particular diet.
   
• Advises cooks and personnel preparing meal trays as to the proper preparation and serving portions of modified diet food. Makes substitutions for food items on the menu which may not be in stock. Advises other food service personnel of the substitution and correct serving portions of the substituted item.
   
• Receives requests for nourishments and special request items from the nursing stations and supervises the preparation and delivery of same.
   
• May assist in writing regular menu. May write or assist in writing modified diet menu and diet patterns.
   
• May provide other food service personnel with on-the-job and/or in-service training.

The intent of the listed knowledge, skills and abilities is to give a general indication of the core requirements for all positions in the class series; therefore, the KSA’s listed are not exhaustive or necessarily inclusive of the requirements of every position in the class.

• Knowledge of modified diet patterns.
• Knowledge of various foods and their nutritional value.
• Knowledge of applicable diet manuals and reference books.
• Knowledge of serving methods and procedures.
• Knowledge of basic mathematics including percentages and decimals.
• Knowledge of various kitchen utensils.
• Knowledge of supervisory practices and procedures.
• Knowledge of filing procedures and techniques.
• Knowledge of recordkeeping practices and procedures.
• Ability to use and understand dietary manuals and reference books.
• Ability to adapt regular menus to modified diets.
• Ability to make menu substitutions while retaining nutritional value.
• Ability to perform basic mathematical computations, including percentages and decimals.
• Ability to perform basic recordkeeping practices and procedures.
• Ability to communicate effectively in written and oral form.
• Ability to apply filing procedures and techniques.
• Ability to apply supervisory practices and procedures.

JOB REQUIREMENTS for Dieticians Assistant
Applicants must have education, training and/or experience demonstrating competence in each of the following areas:

1. Knowledge of food preparation and portion control.
2. Knowledge of special diets such as low sodium or mechanical soft.
3. Knowledge of nutritional value of foods.
4. Knowledge of math such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, percentages, or decimals.
5. Knowledge of record keeping.