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Krznarić Ž, Vranešić Bender D, Blaž Kovač M, Cuerda C, van Ginkel-Res A, Hiesmayr M, Marinho A, Mendive J, Monteiro I, Pirlich M, Musić Milanović S, Kozjek NR, Schneider S, Chourdakis M, Barazzoni R. Clinical nutrition in primary care: ESPEN position paper. Clin Nutr 2024:S0261-5614(24)00059-1. [PMID: 38471980 DOI: 10.1016/j.clnu.2024.02.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2024] [Accepted: 02/13/2024] [Indexed: 03/14/2024]
Abstract
Primary care healthcare professionals (PCHPs) are pivotal in managing chronic diseases and present a unique opportunity for nutrition-related disease prevention. However, the active involvement of PCHPs in nutritional care is limited, influenced by factors like insufficient education, lack of resources, and time constraints. In this position paper The European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism (ESPEN) promotes the active engagement of PCHPs in nutritional care. We emphasize the importance of early detection of malnutrition by screening and diagnosis, particularly in all individuals presenting with risk factors such as older age, chronic disease, post-acute disease conditions and after hospitalization for any cause. ESPEN proposes a strategic roadmap to empower PCHPs in clinical nutrition, focusing on education, tools, and multidisciplinary collaboration. The aim is to integrate nutrition into medical curricula, provide simple screening tools for primary care, and establish referral pathways to address malnutrition systematically. In conclusion, we urge for collaboration with PCHP organizations to raise awareness, enhance nutrition skills, facilitate dietitian accessibility, establish multidisciplinary teams, and promote referral pathways, thereby addressing the underestimated clinical challenge of malnutrition in primary care.
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Affiliation(s)
- Željko Krznarić
- University of Zagreb, Zagreb School of Medicine, University Hospital Centre Zagreb, Department of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, Zagreb, Croatia.
| | - Darija Vranešić Bender
- University of Zagreb, Zagreb School of Medicine, University Hospital Centre Zagreb, Department of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, Zagreb, Croatia.
| | - Milena Blaž Kovač
- Community Health Centre Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia; Department of Family Medicine, University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Medicine, Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Cristina Cuerda
- Departamento de Medicina, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Nutrition Unit, Hospital General Universitario Gregorio Marañón, Madrid, Spain
| | - Annemieke van Ginkel-Res
- European Federation of Associations of Dietitians, Diëtheek The Netherlands, Organization of Primary Care Dietitians, The Netherlands
| | - Michael Hiesmayr
- Center for Medical Data Science, Medical University Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Anibal Marinho
- Department of Intensive Care, Hospital Universitário de Santo António, Porto, Portugal
| | - Juan Mendive
- La Mina Primary Health Care Academic Centre, Catalan Health Institute, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Isabel Monteiro
- Department of Sciences, University Institute of Health Sciences, CESPU, Gandra, Portugal; 1H-TOXRUN - One Health Toxicology Research Unit, University Institute of Health Sciences, CESPU, 4585 -116 Gandra, Portugal
| | | | - Sanja Musić Milanović
- University of Zagreb, Zagreb School of Medicine, Division for Health Promotion, Croatian Institute of Public Health, Zagreb, Croatia
| | | | - Stephane Schneider
- Gastroenterology and Clinical Nutrition, Archet University Hospital, Université Côte d'AZUR, Nice, France
| | - Michael Chourdakis
- School of Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece
| | - Rocco Barazzoni
- Department of Medical, Surgical and Health Sciences, University of Trieste, Italy
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