The Madras Medical College (MMC) has proposals to set up an academy of medical nutrition, keeping in mind the need for students to learn the nutritional requirements of a patient in hospital.
The Academy of Clinical Nutrition is expected to be formally launched by the Health Minister by the end of this month.
Often, a doctor will prescribe a diet to the patient based on his/her condition. However, the nutritional needs of the patients must be assessed before the patient is found fit for surgery or for therapy. At a time when almost all arts and science college have introduced nutrition and dietetics as a course, and lifestyle-induced diseases such as diabetes and hypertension require special attention, doctors need the support of a nutrition therapist, says Meenakshi Bajaj, a nutrition therapist attached to the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital, Chennai.
Each disease requires a specific diet, and the nutritional needs are different, Dr. Bajaj explained. In a regular dietitics course, the student learns about the ingredients and the contents of a diet but it is only in clinical setting that the student learns by remaining with the patient and understanding his/her needs, she says.
Nine institutions, including a maternity hospital and a paediatric hospital come under the purview of the Madras Medical College, which is attached to the GH. Yet, there are only three nutritionists. These hospitals receive a large number of patients everyday and each department has its specific requirement, said Dean V. Kanagasabai. The idea is to initially start a two-day course on the need for awareness on nutrition for the student doctors. Later the course could be made part of the medical curriculum, he said.
The aim is to start a year-long course for students who have passed class XII with science subjects. These students would then be taught the basics of nutrition in a clinical setting. Having a dedicated course would not only provide with staff to supervise the patients but also offer the student doctors an opportunity to learn first-hand the necessity of a dedicated effort to provide the best possible service to the patients, the dean said.
