Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Oct;36(5):1771-1781.
doi: 10.1111/jhn.13203. Epub 2023 Jul 12.

Exploring the role of dietitians in mental health services and the perceived barriers and enablers to service delivery: A cross-sectional study

Scott B Teasdale  1   2 , Elise Tripodi  3 , Alexandra Harman  4 , Janice Plain, Tracy L Burrows  5   6
Affiliations

Exploring the role of dietitians in mental health services and the perceived barriers and enablers to service delivery: A cross-sectional study

Scott B Teasdale et al. J Hum Nutr Diet. 2023 Oct.

Erratum in

Abstract

Background: Mental health is a rapidly evolving area of practice for dietitians. The role of dietitians in supporting the physical health of consumers experiencing mental illness is becoming more widely recognised given the importance of lifestyle interventions for physical health. The present study aimed to explore the dietitian role in mental health services as well as identify barriers and enablers to service delivery.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional survey of dietitians currently employed in any capacity in public and private mental health services. An online survey comprised of questions pertaining to four domains, including demographics, role and service provision, experience and supervision, barriers/challenges and drivers/enablers was completed and included closed and open-ended responses.

Results: In total, 48 responses were included. The mean ± SD age of respondents was 36.1 ± 10.9 years (range 23-67 years) with the majority working in inpatient settings. The top three tasks respondents reported conducting were individual consultations (n = 47; 98%), group programs (n = 23; 48%) and multidisciplinary team meetings. Barriers included a lack of awareness from others regarding a dietitian's role in mental health, and a lack of specific tools for nutrition screening. More training, resources and increased evidence base to guide practice would enable better service provision.

Conclusions: The present study provides insights regarding the possible drivers and barriers to effective service provision for dietitians working in mental health services focusing on the local contexts of respondents. The findings highlight the importance and value of working collaboratively within a multidisciplinary team.

Keywords: barriers; dietitian; enablers; mental health; mental illness; service provision.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Mental health diagnoses of individuals that dietitian‐respondents (n = 48 respondents) provide dietetic care to within their respective inpatient (n = 36 workplaces) and outpatient (n = 22 workplaces) workplace settings. Respondents were asked ‘What are the common mental health diagnoses of the people you work with?’. Respondents could select more than one response. *Disorders specifically associated with stress, for example, post‐traumatic stress disorder, adjustment disorder, grief disorder.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Tasks that dietitian‐respondents (n = 48 respondents) complete in their current mental health roles within their respective inpatient (n = 36 workplaces) and outpatient (n = 23 workplaces) workplace settings. Respondents could select more than one response. NDIS, National Disability Insurance Scheme. *‘Other’ tasks reported by respondents included student supervision and ‘nutrition therapy’.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) . National survey of mental health and wellbeing: summary of results, Australia, 2007. ABS cat. no. 4326.0. Canberra: ABS; 2008.
    1. Gardiner E, Baumgart A, Tong A, Elliott JH, Azevedo LC, Bersten A, et al. Perspectives of patients, family members, health professionals and the public on the impact of COVID‐19 on mental health. J Ment Health. 2022;31(4):524–33. - PubMed
    1. Burrows TL. Mental health is EVERY dietitian's business! Nutr Diet. 2022;79(3):276–8. - PubMed
    1. Walker ER, McGee RE, Druss BG. Mortality in mental disorders and global disease burden implications: a systematic review and meta‐analysis. JAMA Psychiatry. 2015;72(4):334–41. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Teasdale SB, Burrows TL, Hayes T, Hsia CY, Watkins A, Curtis J, et al. Dietary intake, food addiction and nutrition knowledge in young people with mental illness. Nutr Diet. 2020;77(3):315–22. - PubMed

Publication types