The positive impact of dietitians in paediatric health care

Paediatric dietitians possess a unique set of skills which they bring to the multidisciplinary care team (MDT). This enables them to play a pivotal role in the detection, diagnosis and treatment of many paediatric diseases. Children in hospital are at risk of being malnourished, and this is more likely in children where there is established disease. An increasing number of children with a range of both acute and chronic diseases derive benefit from nutritional support. Paediatric dietitians can contribute to increased effectiveness in the detection and treatment of disease-related under-nutrition and faltering growth. Additionally, in a number of childhood diseases dietetic intervention is an important component of symptom or disease management, and a small but specific number of conditions can be resolved by dietetic intervention. For paediatric dietitians to be most effective they themselves must promote and utilize fully all of their acquired knowledge and skills and practise at the pinnacle of their profession specific standards of proficiency. Other health professionals should ensure that they are aware of, and acknowledge, the clinical expertise of dietitians if effective nutrition and dietetic services are to be achieved and children are to attain an optimum nutritional outcome.