Dr. Heather Keller

Older adults can self-manage by using Nutri-eSCREEN

drkeller — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 01:51:10 +0000

SCREEN (Seniors in the Community Risk Evaluation for Eating and Nutrition) is a self-administered nutrition risk screening tool designed to help health care and social service providers identify nutrition problems in their community-living clientele and assists them with providing more comprehensive nutrition care, especially when risk factors are linked to diverse services in the community such as meal programs and grocery shopping services. 2012 is seeing a first! This valid and reliable tool, used in research and practice is now available on the internet for the older adult user. Working with Dietitians of Canada, I spent quite a bit of time in 2011 to develop the Nutri-eSCREEN (www.eatrightontario.ca/escreen/) interface and tested it with older adults. This site allows a senior to complete SCREEN on their own and then provides them with their individualized results. Motivating messages promote changing behaviour and credible nutrition links and resources are provided. This is the first known self-management site directed to older adults, focused on their nutritional health and based on research with a quality tool. Check it out, and suggest it to a senior you know!

A new year in nutrition care in Canada

drkeller — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 15:44:13 +0000

Well it is the beginning of 2012. Lots of new beginnings… I have started a new position at the University of Waterloo as the Schlegel Research Chair in Nutrition and Aging. I am very excited about this opportunity as it will afford me the time to focus on conducting applied nutrition research for older adults. I am working with a great team within the UW-Schlegel Research Institute of Aging and it is an exciting time to see things that have been percolating move forward. Specifically, the Canadian Malnutrition Task Force (CMTF) of the Canadian Nutrition Society will be launching its webpage and Partners Against Malnutrition initiative this week! Check out the website at www.nutritioncareincanada.ca. As co-chair of CMTF it has been a busy time the past few months and phase 3 of our study Nutrition Care In Canadian Hospitals will round out our data collection this year. We are also adding a pediatric arm to the study this year. We are planning a variety of stakeholder engagement activities to develop the Partners Against Malnutrition coalition that will help us to address the pressing issue of malnutrition in Canadian hospitals.

My work in the area of nutrition and longterm care will also take some new paths this year. Using the Life Nourishment Theory as a basis I hope to work with various stakeholders to further understand the importance of the dining experience in retirement homes and long term care and develop interventions that will improve mealtime satisfaction, social interaction at meals and quality of life. The next few months will be a planning phase to develop some of these new initiatives.

Screening tool vs Screening Program!

drkeller — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 23:48:35 +0000

On October 5/6 2011 I was in Washington at the ‘Nutrition and Health Aging in the Community : A workshop’ hosted by the Institute of Medicine Food and Nutrition Board. I was asked to come and talk about how nutrition care happens in the community in Canada for older adults. Several presentations were on the Elderly Nutrition Program in the States, which provides hot meals or congregate dining opportunities to older adults who are eligible. They have been conducting nutrition screening in these programs for several years. Hearing their struggles with having this service reach all those who need it, while still having unmet needs due to eligibility, awareness and funding problems, I was struck by how screening is so often used as a marker, indicator or even an outcome, rather than a means of identifying who needs various available interventions/services. This is such an easy pit to fall into– ‘if we screen for problems, things will change’. The reality is that a screening tool is just that, a tool. A screening program is what is needed to ensure that identified needs are met with services/intervention/treatment. Imagine going to your doctor and having a blood test done. A bad result is found, perhaps never communicated to you, and nothing happens after the blood result is in. This is like using a nutrition screening tool and not changing what happens with the senior after they have been screened! A screening program will ensure an ethical screening process that identifies needs, and maps out how those needs can be met with current services available with the service provider who administered the screening as well as other services, programs, health professionals in the greater community. Such a screening program, would lead to changes for the older adult and be truly secondary prevention! Check out my presentation slides on the IOM website that focus in on this concept of using screening as a means of stimulating secondary prevention for older adults.

Blog musings…

drkeller — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 13:07:25 +0000

Thanks for coming to this blog. On a weekly basis I will provide my insights on recent happenings, media spots, and new knowledge in the are of nutrition for older adults. As we age, nutrition becomes even more important for staying healthy and active. I hope that you will find these musings useful in your own life and the lives of older adults you care for.