Locum Dietetics Careers Toolkit - The Definitive Guide To Working As a Locum Dietitian
Dietetics is an area of healthcare that looks at how our nutrition and diet affect our overall health and well-being. Dietitians are qualified and regulated healthcare professionals who work to diagnose and treat dietary and nutritional issues in patients, as well as the general public as a whole through research. The dietitian will provide interventions for the patient from initial clinical assessment, diagnosis, treatment and evaluation of their care within set patient groups. They will demonstrate safe, clinical decision-making and expert care for patients and many professionals are choosing to work as agency dietitians for the benefits it offers. So, in this article, we will create the definitive guide to working as an agency dietitian and learn more about this important role in healthcare.
About Dietetics in the UK
Dietetics is a core component of modern healthcare in the UK, providing patients with diagnosis and treatment of conditions and ailments associated with nutrition. It is a medical profession found in both the NHS Hospitals and in private clinics, working in a variety of settings including acute, ICU, surgical, rehabilitation and community outpatients. By using the latest technology and research on nutrition, food and diseases, dietitians can offer specialist nutrition and dietetic advice to patients and their carers.
Dietetics as a profession is regulated in the UK, and all dietitians must be registered with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) to practise. Part of the registration process with the HCPC requires all dietitians to hold a relevant degree in dietetics (or equivalent). Maintaining registration will also require consistent continuing professional development (CPD) to stay up-to-date with the latest insights and trends in the industry.
What is Locum Work?
Locum work is a specific type of working arrangement that allows dietitians to take on temporary assignments across different organisations.
Working as a locum dietitian gives you much more control over things like when and where you work, which in turns unlocks many different benefits. Some of the main advantages of choosing to work as a locum dietitian include:
