Why Do You Want to Be a Dietitian: a Journey of Purpose

Early Inspiration for Dietitian Career

I have always wanted to be a consummate and successful dietician who can make a difference in the lives of those needing to maintain a healthy lifestyle. I feel that it is my true calling in life. Ever since I can remember, I have always recognized the value of healthy living through proper eating. Whenever my mom went to the gym for her regular workouts, I would join her and after each session, she always took the time to prepare delicious nutritious meals at home. Growing up, I could count on my hands the number of times that I went out to eat. Home was all about nutritious eating, and I always enjoyed helping my mom prepare meals whenever possible.

It was not until I was 10 when I became fascinated with fitness and nutrition. While exercising at home with a classmate named Denise Austin, she mentioned that there were 9 calories in 1 gram of fat. I was so intrigued to learn more about this bit of quantified information that I started to look at food labels and conducted online research on what values provide the best possible levels of nutrition in children and adults to maintain proper health. This started my road towards a career in nutrition, health and wellness.

A Complementary Path of a Dietitian

After changing my major twice, I finally decided on and completed my baccalaureate in Human Nutrition at the Ohio State University in 2007. I conscientiously practiced what I was learning, taking only healthy meals while going through workouts 5 days a week. It was something that I enjoyed doing while ensuring that I was able to manage my weight. After graduation, I proceeded to my 2nd undergraduate course, which I completed in 2010 to become a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN). Becoming a nurse complemented my nutrition degree. Over a the last 10 years, my desire to enhance my knowledge in nutrition has progressively motivated me to specialize in this field, and becoming a dietician became so compelling that I could not think of any other career outside of it. I was effectively using my nursing role to advance my advocacies and initiatives in ensuring my patients would have the proper nutrition they need during and after their stay in the hospital.

While serving in the healthcare sector, I obtained a certificate as a health coach with emphasis on nutrition and weight loss. Seeing so many people in search of effective weight loss solutions has strengthened my desire to reverse what I consider a pandemic health issue afflicting professionals and workers in America due to unhealthy eating binges and a sedentary work life that has led to obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disorders. It certainly helped that being a nurse has exposed me to work with the elderly and post-operative patients who need proper nutrition. This awareness and experience allowed me to witness firsthand the impact that poor nutrition can have on the human body over time and how a healthy eating lifestyle can help prevent the recurrence of diseases already treated and the onset of new ones. . Along the way, I have mastered dealing with individuals and personalities across diverse ethnicity and backgrounds in various healthcare cases, further honing my critical thinking skills to be creative and efficient in providing outstanding patient care.

Becoming a Registered Dietitian

Since graduating from Ohio State University in 2007, I have managed to retake DPD Science courses such as Biology I and II, Chemistry I/Lab and Chemistry II/Lab, Microbiology, and Anatomy & Physiology I and II earning the grades A and B+, B+/B, and C/A, B, and A and A respectively. I have retaken DPD Core Courses such and Principles of Food Preparation, Fundamentals of Nutrition, and Medical Nutrition Therapy I, earning the grades A, A, and A respectively. Currently I am retaking the Nutrition Care Process and Medical Nutrition Therapy II. I will soon be taking my exam to become a Dietetic Technician Registered (DTR). At this point in my career, I know I still have so much to learn to bring my knowledge to a level where I can find the career fulfillment I seek as a Dietician in a healthcare setting, one who provide the best possible nutritional care to help individuals in achieving their health goals with custom diets. I am now leveraging my awareness on the importance of proper nutrition to pursue an internship program in dietetics with a view to helping people gain maximum biophysical outcomes that would allow them to live long quality lives and give their loved ones the best version of themselves. I have spent years as a nurse and I realize that many chronic and terminal ailments could have been prevented with proper nutrition.

Current Accomplishments

My current professional role as a healthcare provider has well-positioned me to perform in the role of a dietetic intern with strong leadership skills and a responsive work ethic. I look to my resourcefulness, adaptability to different people and changing environments, and strong minded self-motivation to achieve success independently with as little supervision as possible as my advantages in this internship program. More importantly, my interpersonal communication skills will help me connect with people in helping them achieve sustainable health objectives. I am reminded of a time when I used my social and interpersonal skills to help a patient while calming a very distressed mom.

The next day my supervisor thanked me for my patience and compassionate care. I learned that during a care conference meeting, the mom mentioned my name in a positive light, telling those in the meeting how attentive I was to her son. This made her very happy, reversing a past encounter when she had nothing nice to say to the care her son had received. After completing this program, I plan to serve as a preceptor in the short handed profession of dietetics and harness my knowledge to make a positive impact on interns that will enable them to achieve in career goals. Farther down the road, I plan to serve as a board-certified nutritionist/dietician in a high-volume hospital setting where I can make a positive impact on as many patients as possible. On the side, I plan to volunteer my expertise in advocacy campaign promoting healthy eating lifestyles, especially in underserved community. I hope to be able to give back to society what I have been blessed to gain in building my career as a dietician. I look forward to realizing these plans sooner than later, through this internship program, which I am determined to pursue this year.