The mission of the Nestlé Nutrition Institute Advanced Enteral Nutrition program is to empower the dietitian to communicate effectively with the healthcare team and promote leadership skills that are essential to enhancing patient care and ultimately improve outcomes.

This exclusive program for Registered Dietitians is designed to foster advanced knowledge, experience and enthusiasm for enteral nutrition as a primary therapy in the acute care setting.  This unique program provides an intimate and interactive educational experience.

Participant Expectations

By submitting an application for participation in the Nestlé Nutrition Institute Advanced Enteral Nutrition Program, you agree to the following expectations:

1.  The participants are required to attend and interact on each of the five conference calls.  The total amount of time for the five calls is 8.5 hours over a five week time frame (one call per week on Wednesdays).  The conference calls will last typically 1.5 hours.   The conference calls will be held during work hours.  The call in time will be as follows:

2.  Participants will complete all pre-work assignments including required reading and view video-based programs. It is estimated that this will require an additional 2 hours per week.
Please note there will be a required reading assignment prior to the first call.

3.  Participants will prepare a case study for weeks 2 through 5 and at least one participant per call will be selected to present to the group. Estimated prep time is 1 hour.

4.  Participants will prepare an article review for weeks 2 through 5 and at least one participant per call will be selected to present to the group. Estimated prep time is 1 hour.

5.  Participants will answer five questions following each call for weeks 1 through 5 and fax the responses to the Program Instructor for review. Estimated time is 15 minutes.  Time will be allowed during the Q&A session to address the answers to the questions from the previous week.

Program overview

The program will be conducted over five consecutive weeks via weekly telephone conference calls, augmented by reading assignments and quizzes. The conference calls are structured to provide didactic instruction, case study and article presentations, and the opportunity to share ideas with colleagues.

Agenda
•  PPT presentation addressing weekly goals (30 minutes)
•  Application of knowledge (40 minutes)
•  Present a case study
•  Present a published article
•  Q and A session (20 minutes)

Week 1: Medical Team Fundamentals; Interpreting Clinical Studies;
Case Presentations [2.0 hours]
* Course orientation including expectations and use of provided materials
* Interpretation of various forms of published articles
* Patient case presentation for the healthcare team

Week 2: Enteral Nutrition and Access [1.5 hours]
* Methods of enteral access
* How and why the GI tract is protected by enteral feeding
* Monitoring enteral feeding tolerance
* Demonstration: Approaching the healthcare team with nutrition care recommendations

Week 3: Nutrition Support of Gastrointestinal Disorders [1.5 hours]
* Pathophysiology of pancreatitis
* Primary goals for feeding the patient with short bowel syndrome
* Demonstration:Approaching physicians with clinical evidence

Week 4: Geriatrics; Metabolic Conditions – Obesity and Diabetes [1.5 hours]
* Nutritional needs of the geriatric patient
* Exploration: Evidence-based recommended blood sugar goals for hospitalized patients
* Exploration: Approaches to influencing physician prescription for nutritional care of an obese patient with diabetes and pressure ulcers
* Demonstration: MNA^® screening tool utilization

Week 5: Critical Care [2.0 hours]
* Barriers to successfully feeding the critically ill patient
* Markers of hemodynamic stability
* Demonstration: Dialogue that can be used to initiate feeding in a critically ill patient

Nestlé HealthCare Nutrition is a Continuing Professional Education (CPE) Accredited Provider with the Commission on Dietetic Registration.  Registered Dietitians will receive up to 8.5 CPEUs for completion of this program. CPE Accredited Provider Number NE008.

2010 - 2011 Program Instructor

Mark DeLegge MD Professor of Medicine Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC

2012 Program Instructors

Robert G. Martindale MD, PhD Professor of Surgery Chief, Division of General Surgery Medical Director Hospital Nutrition Support Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR

Stephen A. McClave MD Professor of Medicine Division of Gastroenterology/Hepatology Director of Clinical Nutrition, University of Louisville School of Medicine, Louisville, KY

Course Dates & Deadlines

First Course: June 2010
Application Deadline: April 16, 2010

Second Course: October 2010
Application Deadline: August 20, 2010

Third Course: May 2011
Application Deadline: March 18, 2011

Fourth Course: March 14, 2012
Application Deadline: February 10, 2012

Please check back for future course offering dates.

Application Process

You can mail or fax the two required forms.

Print and mail to:

Nestlé HealthCare Nutrition
Attn: Advanced Enteral Nutrition Program
2150 E. Lake Cook Rd.
Riverwalk I, Ste 800
Buffalo Grove, IL 60089
Or
Fax to 866-546-3005

Eligibility Criteria

Nestlé Nutrition Institute^™ Advanced Enteral Nutrition Program is designed to foster advanced knowledge and experience for enteral nutrition as primary therapy focusing on the healthcare professional’s needs in the acute care setting.  The content of this program is most applicable to dietitians working in an acute care environment.  The following criteria have been established in order to apply for this program:

1) Must be a Registered Dietitian practicing in the United States
2) Must be practicing in an acute-care setting
3) Must provide a working email address
4) Must have a minimum of three years experience as a RD
5) Must work with tube fed patients daily
6) Must spend at least 75% of your time each day with acutely ill patients
7) Must obtain manager or supervisor approval to apply for this program

If the above criteria is not met the application will not be evaluated for participation in this program.

The eligibility criteria would be a separate document to open from the evaluation process.

Evaluation Process

Applications will be initially reviewed by Nestlé HealthCare Nutrition personnel for completeness and confirmation that eligibility criteria have been met. Incomplete applications or applications that do not meet the eligibility criteria will not be submitted for further evaluation by Dr. DeLegge, program instructor.  All applicants are responsible for submitting a complete application that meets the identified criteria. 

Completed applications that meet the identified criteria will be forwarded to Dr. DeLegge for evaluation. Dr. DeLegge will rank the applicants and provide the ranking list to Nestlé HealthCare Nutrition personnel.   One candidate from Canada will be considered for each session. 

The top ten candidates will be notified via email and have one week to accept the invitation to participate in the program.  If a candidate does not accept the invitation within one week, the following candidate on the ranking list will be invited.  Ranking is based on the following: number of years of clinical experience, advanced degrees, amount of time spent daily with acutely ill patients and evaluation of the content provided on the Letter of Interest form.  Please note, only one applicant will be ranked per facility for each course offering in order to maximize the availability of this unique program to multiple locations.