Perceived Job Importance and Job Performance Satisfaction of Selected Clinical Nutrition Management Responsibilities

A nationwide survey of clinical nutrition managers was conducted to assess perceived importance of selected job responsibilities and perceived performance satisfaction of those job responsibilities. A questionnaire was developed to achieve the study objectives, validated by an expert panel, and pilot-tested prior to data collection. All members of the American Dietetic Association's Clinical Nutrition Management dietetic practice group (N=1,668) were asked to rate the importance of selected job responsibilities and their satisfaction with those responsibilities using Likert-type scales with descriptions. Results revealed that clinical nutrition managers perceived all job responsibilities listed in the questionnaire to be important (ie, the mean score of each responsibility was >3.0 of a 4.0 scale). Respondents rated regulatory-related job responsibilities as most important and were most satisfied with their performance of these responsibilities. Following regulatory-related responsibilities, clinical nutrition managers perceived patient satisfaction and staff retention to be more important than other responsibilities. In general, clinical nutrition managers were more satisfied with their job performance for job responsibilities that they ranked as more important.