|
|
Member Council :: Spotlight on CDA Men |
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
Orville
E. Bigelow, MS, RD
Manager of Nutrition/Instructor |
|
MC:
What is your area of practice, i.e. specialty area?
Bigelow: I would say that my specialty is
nutrition education; however like many dietitians, ‘general
nutrition’ might be more appropriate! In my job at Project
Angel Food our clients face many diseases and conditions which I
need to be able to address while counseling them. I also
help in the menu planning of special diets and outreach (to
assist other organizations who don’t have a dietitian on staff).
So as you can see I need to have skills in many areas. I would
say that I have to be a ‘jack of all trades’! |
MC:
What do you like best about what you do professionally? Please
share some of your responsibilities.
Bigelow:
I do several things which I enjoy. My ‘day job’ is as the
Manager of Nutrition Services for Project Angel Food
(www.angelfood.org). I love this job because we help to
nourish people facing life threatening conditions and really
help make a difference in their life. It is very rewarding.
As Manager of Nutrition Services I oversee a small staff of
dietitians and interns. My department is responsible for
counseling clients who are on service with us; overseeing
kitchen inspections to ensure the food we serve is safe;
implementing worksite wellness efforts; educating our staff and
clients on nutrition topics; and ensuring that our meals satisfy
special dietary needs. I also teach part time. I
teach both in-person and online classes for California State
University, Los Angeles and Mohave Community College in Arizona.
Helping students understand the basic concepts of nutrition is
very rewarding but helping them out when they have questions
regarding school, internships and job prospects is equally
satisfying! |
MC: Please share your most
unusual day or any challenges you have had on the job?
Bigelow: The challenge that sticks out the
most is when I have had to give presentations and something
occurs that prevents me from giving the presentation I had
originally planned for! I can’t tell you how many times
there has been something wrong with the audio visual equipment,
or the time I was allotted was changed, etc. You must be ready
for anything when giving presentations. Always expect the
unexpected! |
MC: What changes do you
predict in your area of dietetic practice in the next 10 years?
Bigelow: With how quickly things change trying to
predict what dietetics will be like in 10 years is almost
impossible! I will say that in the next few years the
internet and more specifically social networking will play a
major role in many areas of our field. I would say that to
be competitive, a person will need to adapt to these changes
easily. On another note, I think that in 10 years we will
be facing a whole new set of problems. Though obesity and
some of the chronic diseases will still probably play a major
role in dietetics, with the advances we are seeing in the world
of medicine diseases like HIV and diabetes may not. |
MC: What advice or words of
wisdom do you have for dietetic students or new dietitians?
Bigelow: a. Adapt easily. Be open to learn new
skills. Adjust to new situations and new surroundings with
ease and don’t hold on to the old if it is no longer useful; b.
Learn to listen. If you listen to what people have to say
then you can address their issue/problem more effectively.
Don’t go into a situation thinking that you know what is best.
Wait to hear a person out first, and then address the
issue/problem. This applies to almost every situation but
especially counseling clients!; c. And most importantly, network!
Connecting with other dietitians, diet techs, doctors, etc… will
help you build a network of resources that will benefit you
career in so many ways! By yourself you are limited; with
friends/contacts your possibilities are endless! |
MC: How has CDA membership
helped your career professionally and personally?
Bigelow: Being a member of CDA has helped me
tremendously. Not only do the benefits come in handy
(CPEs, job board, resources, etc…) but by being a member I have
been able to network with others in my field which has helped me
tremendously! As I have previously stated, networking is
truly the key to success. Networking with other members
has not only helped me, but has helped others I know as well.
I can’t tell you the number of times that a student or an intern
has asked me to help them find a place to volunteer; a site for
an internship rotation; a job; or someone to talk to from a
particular field, etc… and without being connected to other CDA
members, I wouldn’t have had the connections to make that
happen! |
 |
Art
Kress, MS, RD, LDN
Outpatient Dietitian |
|
MC:
What is your background? What brought you to dietetics?
Kress: About ten years ago, I retired as an
engineering manager. My goal then was to do something
totally different and perhaps help others in the process.
So I returned to school for a master’s degree in nutrition.
After completing an internship at the VA, I began my career
there as an outpatient dietitian. And this led to a job as
coordinator of a grant project to develop a diabetes prevention
program for American Indian/Alaska Native veterans. It
gave me the opportunity to create a series of four DVDs designed
to train-the-trainers in diabetes prevention and a chance to
direct the effort out of the VA’s studio in St. Louis.
Subsequently, I developed an 8-hour assertiveness training
course for the VA and taught it to a group of dietetic interns.
My current job at the Motion Picture & TV Fund followed as did
my election as Co-President Elect of LAD. My greatest
desire now is to effectively promote RDs as the TRUE nutrition
professionals. |
MC:
What is your area of practice, i.e. specialty area?
Kress: I’m currently
providing nutrition support at five outpatient clinics
associated with the Motion Picture & TV Fund (MPTF). My
specialty is diabetes, but also includes the associated
conditions of obesity, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, and
cardiovascular disease. |
MC: What do you like best
about what you do professionally? Please share some of
your responsibilities.
Kress: Mostly, I
enjoy working with patients to resolve or assist in resolving
their health issues. My responsibility at MPTF is to
interview, assess, and treat patients and document the process.
Group training would be ideal here, since many of the clinics I
support have a waiting list. Unfortunately, MPTF can’t
seem to adjust their billing process to cover this, so that list
just continues to grow. |
MC: Please share your most
unusual day or any challenges you have had on the job?
Kress: I can’t point to an unusual day, but my
greatest challenge is working with patients that have problems
beyond my expertise, i.e. G-tube issues, fibromyalgia, kidney
disease, Crohn’s, pregnancy. If I’m lucky, I can monitor
my schedule in advance and prepare for these problems. But
often a reason for the consult is not given so I have no advance
visibility. In these cases, I deal with what I can, and
then research the issue and email the patient later. It’s
sometimes frustrating, but often rewarding as it provides an
opportunity to increase my knowledge. |
MC: What changes do you
predict in your area of dietetic practice in the next 10 years?
Kress: The most significant change, I believe, is a
revolution in how nutrition care will be provided. As
nutrigenomics becomes increasingly predictive, I suspect that
one day soon, we’ll each have a unique genetic prescription to
define what nutrition and lifestyle support is required for
optimum health. Coupled with this will be a rapid increase
in longevity and a great improvement in the quality of life. |
MC: What advice or words of
wisdom do you have for dietetic students or new dietitians?
Kress: Aside from the basic idea of liking
what you do, I would say that the most significant thing, and
perhaps the hardest for some to understand, is to be assertive.
If you want to be treated as a professional, it’s important to
act and dress professionally, and actively work to make change
happen...especially when it comes to the public perception of
RDs. Why is this important? Well, many dietitians
don’t seem to understand that the way they are perceived by the
public affects their status in society and their ability to
command respect. Many think it’s ADA’s job to deal with
these issues, and we should not interfere. But to the contrary,
you MUST interfere. If you don’t, it’s the nutritionist
who will continue to be seen by much of the public as the
nutrition professional. When I first became an RD, I found
a significant problem with the credentialing process and
approached CDR about changing it. Sure I got some
negativity at first, but I eventually got to the President and
convinced her that change was needed. But it’s not so much
my action here that’s important. It’s what happened after
I asked the President if anyone else had called about the
problem. And her answer was no. So why is that?
Why did this problem exist long before I became an RD and no one
else objected? Was it a lack of assertiveness? Perhaps.
But whatever it was, recognize that you may be the problem and
the solution at the same time. You need to look for ways to
improve the profession and help promote RDs as THE nutrition
professionals. And you have more power to do that than you might
imagine. |
MC: How has CDA membership
helped your career professionally and personally?
Kress: My primary interaction with CDA has
been through the Los Angeles District Association. It
provided me with a wonderful opportunity to meet new people,
make friends, do some networking, and begin the process of doing
what I can to strengthen the profession. |
MC: What are your
interests? Other organizations?
Kress:
I basically see myself as a Renaissance guy...with way too many
interests. Over the years, I have worked in professional
theatre, as a published photographer, and as a registered
hypnotherapist. I was a Big Brother for 12 years, matched with a
little sister shortly after her sixth birthday. I created
and taught numerous courses on subjects such as proposal
estimating, metrics, process flow charting, and budgeting and
developed computer programs to help facilitate my various jobs,
including the current one. I also served as technical
consultant to an international magazine and a volunteer with a
suicide prevention center. I love reading, theatre, film,
opera, and concerts. Other than CDA/LAD, I am a member of
the American Dietetic Association, the American Association of
Diabetic Educators and the American Academy of Television Arts &
Sciences (now where did that come from?). A dream I still
hold is to produce a play on Broadway. So maybe next year... |
 |
Peter Mak, RD
Ambulatory Care Dietitian, San Francisco Veterans
Affairs Medical Center |
|
MC:
What is your area of practice, i.e. specialty area?
Mak: I work
in the outpatient setting at the San Francisco Veterans Affairs
Medical Center. Clinics include: hematology/oncology, morbid
obesity/surgery, home-based primary care and the SFVA downtown
clinic. |
MC:
What do you like best about what you do professionally? Please
share some of your responsibilities.
Mak:
I think that it is awesome that I get to work with several
multidisciplinary teams to best help our Veterans and their
families. A sense of honor and pride overcomes me every day as I
walk into work, knowing that I have the opportunity to help
promote good nutrition/health! I provide general classes such as
healthy eating; one-on-one sessions for various medical
problems; home-enteral-nutrition/tube feeding for head-and-neck
cancer patients seeking aggressive modalities of treatment
(chemoradiation) and some home-visits for a population of
Veterans who would benefit from primary care in a home-care
setting. |
MC: Please share your most
unusual day or any challenges you have had on the job?
Mak: Challenges – some people are not
ready in the behavioral-cognitive model (stage of change),
financial/housing instability, home environment and other
underlying psychological and medical problems are barriers to
progress. It is also hard to give 200% to each clinic – I
wish to do a superb job in each area, but limited hours limit
what I can do. |
MC: What changes do you
predict in your area of dietetic practice in the next 10 years?
Mak: The increasing population of retiring Veterans and
family members, combined with medical/technological advances
prolonging life, requiring more support and funding. I
think that nutrition-related diseases would increase the demand
for resources such as time, personnel/practitioners.
Besides retiring service members pre-September-11, we have a
brand-new generation of patriots from our most recent War on
Terrorism. Nutrition outreach to advocate preventative
maintenance and early intervention is crucial to minimize health
risks later on. Instead of reacting to problems, more
proactive methods of approach should be emphasized. We do have
great programs currently and the changes are occurring as you
read this. |
MC: What advice or words of
wisdom do you have for dietetic students or new dietitians?
Mak: Turn each situation into an opportunity and be
adaptable to changes. Maintain a positive mental attitude in the
rain or shine, show pride for your profession and make yourself
an asset to those around you! |
MC: How has CDA membership
helped your career professionally and personally?
Mak: CDA helped me stay in touch with friends and
personnel in different specialties, kept me “in the loop” with
current events in dietetics/nutrition at the local and at the
national level. I have the opportunity to join
professional groups within the organization for higher learning
and specialty credentials. |
 |
Christopher Lauderdale,
MS, RD
Clinical Dietitian |
|
MC:
What is your area of practice, i.e. specialty area?
Lauderdale:
Now, it's clinical dietetics. I've had the good fortune of
having worked in many areas of nutrition; public health,
corporate recipe development, university lecturer,
chef/instructor at two culinary schools. |
MC:
What do you like best about what you do professionally? Please
share some of your responsibilities.
Lauderdale:
I've always loved teaching, especially hands-on cooking
and food science demonstrations. Teachers have to be life-long
learners. Now I'm at a teaching hospital and work closely with
medical residents and dietetic interns. I learn something new
every day that I can pass along to my students. |
MC: Please share your most
unusual day or any challenges you have had on the job?
Lauderdale:
I was asked to do a presentation on "Edible Insects" for
my daughter's 3rd grade class, with recipes, nutrition
information, and a cooking demo. Word got around, and I've
since given the presentation at numerous colleges and speaking
engagements. |
MC: What changes do you
predict in your area of dietetic practice in the next 10 years?
Lauderdale: I
see a growing recognition among young MDs that nutrition is an
area of specialization that goes beyond their training, and an
increased reliance on us to provide essential support to the
healing process. |
MC: What advice or words of
wisdom do you have for dietetic students or new dietitians?
Lauderdale:
Stay curious. Look for connections between what you're
learning now and what you've previously learned. Every time I
think I've got a handle on "the big picture", something new
comes along that I have to integrate, and my whole view of
nutrition changes. |
MC: How has CDA membership
helped your career professionally and personally?
Lauderdale:
Everyone has their own area of interest and expertise, and
we're a small community. I frequently get calls from other RDs
looking for a guest speaker or consultant, and I often refer
patients and students to RDs I've met who specialize in other
areas. |
 |
Aaron
Flores, RD
Clinical Dietitian |
|
MC:
What is your area of practice, i.e. specialty area?
Flores:
My focus is in outpatient counseling. Specifically, I am
involved with the VA's MOVE Weight Management program. I teach
and counsel Veterans on healthy strategies for weight loss. I
also coordinate an employee wellness program that helps VA
employees learn how to manage their weight. |
MC:
What do you like best about what you do professionally? Please
share some of your responsibilities.
Flores:
My responsibilities on a
daily basis are first and foremost direct patient care which
also includes time for documentation. I spend most of my time
teaching weight management classes to a variety of Veteran
populations. I also do some individual counseling, but I mostly
focus on group classes. Another large part of my job is planning
and organizing our MOVEmployee program. The third component of
my job is working with our dietetic interns. The best part of my
job is the fact that I get to teach both Veterans and future
dietitians. I find that my best days are when I've had a great
teaching experience. There was a moment when someone had an
"aha" moment and realizes that really can make changes to lose
weight or when and intern improves their counseling skills after
a discussion we had. |
MC: Please share your most
unusual day or any challenges you have had on the job?
Flores: Well
working with Veterans, there is never a dull moment, and it's
why I love working at the VA. The experiences that stick out the
most with me are the moments of demystifying a healthy diet. At
least once a week I get a question about some new fad diet,
weight loss pill or crazy idea to lose weight. My greatest
challenge is trying to re-direct their focus to healthy eating
while also validating their desire to lose weight. What makes my
job so unique is the fact that almost every Veteran comes to see
me with some underlying issue that has affected their weight.
For some it might be PTSD, for others it might be a mental
health diagnosis and they are on medications whose side-effects
include weight gain, and yet for many there are other social
issues that make my job jus that more difficult. I have learned
that to be effective with these individuals, you must really
listen, empathize and make them feel like you are a partner in
their goals. Only then will they really listen to you and be
willing to make changes. |
MC: What changes do you
predict in your area of dietetic practice in the next 10 years?
Flores: In the next
10 years I feel like one big change will be working with those
Veterans with mental health diagnosis. As more and more Veterans
return from combat we are realizing how their mental status not
only affects their social health, but also influences their
ability to choose healthy foods. Because more and more Veterans
are being treated with medications which cause weight gain and
lead to the metabolic syndrome, more and more dietitians will be
asked to work with others who treat the mentally ill to educate
Veterans on healthy eating. |
MC: What advice or words of
wisdom do you have for dietetic students or new dietitians?
Flores: I
talk to a lot of Los Angeles-based students and interns through
my work at the VA. I understand that there are more and more
students who are interested in our field and that dietetic
internships are harder and harder to come by. Because things
have become so competitive, each student must stand out to
internship directors to even be considered for an internship,
especially in the Los Angeles area. My advice would be to have a
very candid discussion with your DPD director. Talk about your
long-term goals and how you see yourself fitting into the
professional field and talk about if this field is really right
for you. If you think this is the career for you, then
understand how competitive the field is becoming and be willing
to do everything within your means to become an excellent
candidate for internships. Find a mentor and use that person for
guidance. Having advocates who believe in your skills is
essential for promoting you to other professionals but also to
help motivate you stay on your career path. It is a difficult
journey, but one that will be rewarding beyond belief if you
choose to become an RD. Recently at lunch some colleagues and I
were discussing what was that moment at work that keeps us going
and what is most rewarding at work. My answer was seeing someone
who has tried to lose weight in the past, been unsuccessful and
they feel like they will never be healthy finally decide that
they have the ability to change their life. I love that moment
of seeing their face light up when they realize that one simple
change in their diet can make a difference and knowing that they
really do have the power to improve their health. That moment
keeps me motivated to help others. |
MC: How has CDA membership
helped your career professionally and personally?
Flores: CDA
has helped me by being an advocate for RDs in the profession. I
appreciate how CDA fights for issues that are important to the
profession and try to promote RDs as the nutrition experts for
the public. |
 |
Chad
Edwards, MS, RD
Clinical Nutrition Supervisor |
|
MC:
What is your area of practice, i.e. specialty area?
Edwards: Clinical Nutrition...ICU/critical
care, general med/surg |
MC:
What do you like best about what you do professionally? Please
share some of your responsibilities.
Edwards: Having a direct
effect on a patient's overall health and outcome.
Responsibilities include: clinical assessment/recommendations,
participation in ICU rounds (interdisciplinary), policy
development/revision, patient education. |
MC: Please share your most
unusual day or any challenges you have had on the job?
Edwards: The most challenging thing (at
times) is getting doctors to accept new nutrition
recommendations/theories. |
MC: What changes do you
predict in your area of dietetic practice in the next 10 years?
Edwards: Hopefully, there will be an increase in
physician receptiveness to diet and exercise and proper
nutrition support initiation. I would also like to see
more insurance coverage for MNT, both in amount of reimbursement
and overall number of disease states that are covered. |
MC: What advice or words of
wisdom do you have for dietetic students or new dietitians?
Edwards: Although I have been a clinical
dietitian for almost 10 years, there are many avenues for an RD
to be employed...with the prevalence of obesity, cardiac disease
and diabetes, the RD will continue to be an integral part of
these conditions. |
MC: How has CDA membership
helped your career professionally and personally?
Edwards: Being a member of CDA has
allowed me to understand the inner-workings of promoting the
dietetics field. By being the president-elect of NADA, I
hope to be able to use this information to further the public's
understanding of what RDs do as well as opening new awareness of
employment for dietetics professinals. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
