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The paediatric (children’s) dietitian specialises in assessing
nutritional requirements, food intake and growth. Individually tailored
dietary advice is provided based on a child’s age, treatment
and medical condition.
Who we provide a service to
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The Paediatric Dietitian manages an age group from the very
premature infant through infancy and childhood until adolescence,
when their care is transferred to an adult service.
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As a District General Hospital (DGH), specialist Paediatric
Dietetic Services are provided to the diabetes service, gastro-enterology
team, Child Development Centre, paediatric neurology and general
medical and surgical inpatients
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Our Team of five paediatric dietitans is led and supported
by a Chief Paediatric Dietitian and Senior I and Senior II dietitians,
which facilitates education, support, peer review and continuing
professional development.
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Our team of paediatric dietitians is steadily increasing and
there are some exciting developments planned for new services
in the future.
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A specialist paediatric nutritional support post has been developed
to meet the needs of children who require parenteral nutrition
in the hospital, and for those children requiring home enteral
feeding in the Cambridge area.
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Other developments in diabetes include insulin-pump therapy
and DAFNE (dose-adjustment for normal eating). These can facilitate
more normal eating whilst achieving good diabetic control (more
information about DAFNE)
Education
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We have a commitment to teaching and education both within
Addenbrooke's and with other health professionals locally. We
are also an essential resource in many areas of paediatric dietetics
for paediatric dietitians based across the Eastern Region.
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As a Regional Centre for a number of paediatric specialities,
our paediatric dietitians are skilled in neonatology, paediatric
intensive care, cystic fibrosis, oncology as well as specialist
surgery and metabolic medicine.
Why we provide a service
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The paediatric dietitian specialises in translating individual
nutritional requirements into practical dietary and feeding
practices or regimens, to optimise health, growth and development
within the confines of the child’s particular condition.
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As an inpatient, each child receives a broad assessment of
their nutritional status on admission. A more detailed assessment
can then be carried out by a paediatric dietitian where indicated.
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During an inpatient stay, a child might require nutritional
support and/or a special or therapeutic diet. This will involve
assessment and input from one of our team. Each child is monitored
throughout their stay by a paediatric dietitian and, where appropriate,
follow-up after discharge is provided via our outpatient facility
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The paediatric dietitian has a high profile within the multi-disciplinary
team, both within individual paediatric specialities and on
the Children's Unit. We work closely on developing policies
and procedures for use within the Children Unit such as the
Corporate Nutrition Standards, Enteral Nutrition
Protocols and also with the Catering Department to provide
nutritious, balanced choices throughout a child’s hospital
stay
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We hold a minimum of six paediatric dietetic-led clinics per
month, and take referrals from Addenbrooke's paediatricians
and their teams. These have a focus on issues such as managing
faltering growth, feeding difficulties, iron-deficiency anaemia,
food intolerance and allergy, coeliac disease and childhood
obesity. In addition, we have an input to a variety of Consultant-led
clinics
Also on this website:
Addenbrooke's for children
and young people: Childrens
Services
For further information contact: The Department of Nutrition & Dietetics,
Box 119, Addenbrooke's Hospital, Hills Road, Cambridge CB2 2QQ; Tel: 01223 216
655; Fax: 01223 216 824 |
