The New Professionalism in Dietetics: Practitioner and Client Perceptions of Dietitians' Competencies Required for Nutrition Education and Counselling of Individuals

Nutrition education is a key role of clinical dietitians, yet there are no known standards of practice which describe competence in nutrition education and counselling of individuals. This study aimed to examine competencies of dietitians required for this role and develop a practice guideline.
To explore this issue, a sequential qualitative-quantitative mixed method design was used. In the first instance, purposive quota samples of dietitians working in Victoria, and their clients, were recruited from the healthcare categories of hospital, community, and private practice. In-depth interview
methods were used to obtain the views of dietitians and their clients. The results were used to develop a questionnaire for a nationwide survey of dietitians in the field. Dietitian members of DAA responded to the survey, which was administered via the Worldwide Web.