Dietetics, building the future

Research has shown that dietetic intervention in patients with obesity and comorbidity can be effective. However, effectivity differs per individual and many patients stop treatment prematurely. Furthermore, it is unclear which components of the dietetic treatment result in success. What works? For whom? Under what conditions and why does it work? These are the questions we are researching in this research project Dietetics, building the future. We will do so in a national research consortium that consists of Wageningen University & Research, Erasmus MC, Haagse Hogeschool, Hanzehogeschool Groningen, Hogeschool van Amsterdam, Hogeschool Arnhem en Nijmegen (HAN), the Dutch society of dietitians (NVD) and various organisations from the dietetic work field. The research will start with looking in databases and literature at which components in dietetic are associated with effectivity. After, we will carry out interviews and focus group discussions with dietitians and patients to learn more about their experiences. The results of these first phases will result in a toolbox to be used in practice by dietitians, which we will create together with dietitians and patients. This toolbox is aimed at offering a personalised treatment, by combining different components that are associated with effectivity. We will create an e-learning for dietitians and recommendations for how the toolbox can be implemented. The lessons learnt from the first phases of the research, together with the input from the dietetic field will determine what the toolbox will look like. The most important thing for us is that every dietitian can use our research findings in practice!