FROM MY PT SCHOOL NOTES · NUTRITION · UNIT 3 · CHAPTER 11
Illness, Malnutrition, and Nutrition Care
Acute and chronic illness can interfere with food intake, absorption, metabolism, hydration, and the ability to heal. Nutrition assessment is a team responsibility.
What matters most
- Risk screening is not a diagnosis. Poor appetite, involuntary weight loss, dysphagia, GI problems, pressure injuries, or prolonged illness may trigger a nutrition referral.
- The nutrition-care process. Dietitians use assessment, nutrition diagnosis, intervention, and monitoring/evaluation (ADIME) to build a clinical nutrition plan.
- Multiple assessment domains. Dietary history, functional/clinical findings, anthropometrics, biochemical context, and social circumstances provide complementary information.
The PT connection
For a hospitalized patient with rapid unintentional weight loss and low activity tolerance, document the concern, coordinate with the medical team, and request an RDN assessment while modifying exercise to observed capacity.
Current-practice perspective
The course includes age-dependent screening grids and laboratory thresholds. Use local validated screening protocols and current criteria rather than lifting older tables.
From my original course material: 11 Illness and Nutrition Care.pdf (pp. 2–32); Nutrition in Health Promotion and Wellness.pdf (pp. 6–7). These are personal PT-school class notes adapted for education. Historical claims require current source verification. Not individualized nutrition advice or a substitute for a registered dietitian or prescribing team.
