Title |
Food allergy competencies of dietitians in the United Kingdom, Australia and United States of America
|
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Published in |
Clinical and Translational Allergy, November 2014
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DOI | 10.1186/2045-7022-4-37 |
Pubmed ID | |
Authors |
Kate Maslin, Rosan Meyer, Liane Reeves, Heather Mackenzie, Anne Swain, Wendy Stuart-Smith, Rob Loblay, Marion Groetch, Carina Venter |
Abstract |
A knowledgeable and competent dietitian is an integral part of the food allergy multidisciplinary team, contributing to effective diagnosis and management of food allergic disorders. Little is currently known about the food allergy training needs and preferences of dietitians. The purpose of this paper is to measure and compare self-reported food allergy competencies of dietitians based in the UK, Australia and USA. A survey of USA-based paediatric dietitians was developed to measure self-reported proficiency and educational needs in the area of food allergy. The survey was modified slightly and circulated online to paediatric and adult dietitians in the UK and Australia. Descriptive statistics and Pearson correlations are presented. A total of 797 dietitians completed the questionnaire. Competency in "developing food challenge protocols" and "managing feeding problems" were rated the poorest overall across all three settings. A higher level of competency was significantly positively associated with length of practice as a dietitian, percentage of caseload composed of patients with food allergy and training in food allergy. The most popular topics for further training were food additives, pharmacological reactions and oral allergy syndrome. There is a need amongst dietitians to increase their knowledge in different aspects of food allergy diagnosis and management, specifically the areas of developing food challenge protocols and management of feeding problems. This study provides valuable information for designing targeted food allergy education for dietitians. |
X Demographics
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
United States | 3 | 50% |
United Kingdom | 2 | 33% |
Netherlands | 1 | 17% |
Demographic breakdown
Type | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Members of the public | 3 | 50% |
Practitioners (doctors, other healthcare professionals) | 2 | 33% |
Scientists | 1 | 17% |
Mendeley readers
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Switzerland | 1 | 3% |
Unknown | 39 | 98% |
Demographic breakdown
Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Student > Ph. D. Student | 6 | 15% |
Researcher | 5 | 13% |
Student > Bachelor | 4 | 10% |
Student > Postgraduate | 3 | 8% |
Student > Doctoral Student | 3 | 8% |
Other | 11 | 28% |
Unknown | 8 | 20% |
Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Medicine and Dentistry | 10 | 25% |
Nursing and Health Professions | 9 | 23% |
Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 4 | 10% |
Psychology | 2 | 5% |
Social Sciences | 2 | 5% |
Other | 2 | 5% |
Unknown | 11 | 28% |