Dietitian burnout and workload
This study was conducted by Assistant Professor Rosa K Hand and colleagues in the Department of Nutrition, School of Medicine at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, USA.
Work patterns in renal nutrition
Showcasing how WOMBAT is used by global research teams
Like other health professionals, there are concerns about registered dietitian burnout and workload. In the US, dialysis is a unique healthcare environment because:
- most dialysis is paid for by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and
- a registered dietitian is a required member of the interdisciplinary team and has the ability to establish long-term relationships with patients.
However, dietitians self-report that they are being asked to take on more and more administrative and documentation responsibilities, limiting the time for behavior change counseling.
This study used a newly developed WOMBAT template to quantify these patterns. In a small sample, we demonstrated that WOMBAT can be used with allied health professionals like dietitians and in outpatient settings like dialysis.
Findings
Our findings about the proportion of time spent in direct care (25%), communication (20%) and transit (7%) have surprising similarity to those described in med/surg nurses using WOMBAT methodology previously (Westbrook et al 2009).