Course II: Nutrition Assessment/Prescription

Objectives: At the conclusion of the course, PTs and PTAs will be able to:

1. Analyze whether a PT should be provided physical therapy specific nutritional services, referred to a licensed dietician or other provider, or deferred for nutritional care altogether.
2. Understand how to use the following dietary assessments: 24-hour dietary recall, dietary record, and the Food Frequency Questionnaire.
3. Recall online resources for screening, such as the Fruit, Vegetable, Fiber Screener; Fat Intake Screener; and Mini Nutritional Assessment.
4. Compare and contrast the benefits and drawbacks to the 24-hour dietary recall, dietary record, and the Food Frequency Questionnaire.
5. Perform the components of a basic nutrition history
6. Understand the following forms of physical dietary assessment: serum nutrient levels, saliva testing, and urine sampling
7. Compare and contrast the benefits and drawbacks to: serum nutrient levels, saliva testing, and urine sampling
8. Apply the appropriate assessment tool(s) given a specific physical therapy patient case
9. Explain the role and methods of dietary goal setting
10. Provide examples of dietary goal setting specific for physical therapy patient outcomes
11. Recall common dietary calculations for macronutrients to promote energy balance and healing for physical therapy patients
12. Outline a full dietary prescription including: types and amounts of foods, frequency, prep, calculation of energy needs, calculation of macronutrient needs, nutrient factors, contextual factors
13. Analyze physical therapy patients’ dietary prescriptions and provide dietary prescriptive recommendations to optimize healing, movement, and/or reduce pain.