Featured Intern: Nicole Says Hello!

Many students wonder what it's like to go through a dietetic internship. Will it be a wonderful learning experience? What will it be like working with a RD? While I did my undergraduate at the University of Georgia, I was apprehensive before beginning the internship process. Now mid-way through my internship at Life University, I hope to share some of my experiences so that future and fellow interns can relax and relate to it all, I hope to bring back memories for all you RD’s, and you can see what it is like now for us 2010 interns.

Today, as I sit here drinking my berry smoothie with probiotics (made by my boyfriend--I have taught him well), I will share with you my experience at a dialysis center in the heart of Atlanta. A renal rotation is one of our required three-week rotations. If you have thought of yourself as someone who can handle blood and guts, well think again. I thought so too, but I was definitely wrong. I walked into the dialysis center and smelled the sweet iron smell of blood. Ok, not too bad. I spent my first hour getting a tour, and was then left to watch the nurse set up and remove people from the dialysis machine. After standing around watching the machine twirl blood around for an hour, I felt a little woozy.


What I came to realize is that about 90% of the patients don't care about their phosphorus levels or how improving their diet could improve their quality of life. It seemed patients hardly looked my way when I spoke to them. In dialysis, the RD is the devil (nurses and others blame the RD for anything the patient doesn't like... for example, drawing labs and taking nauseating phosphate binders). Patients just don't seem to care when their other hand is amputated because their Diabetes complications are so out-of-control. They just let their beautiful soft tissues and organs harden like a rock. I think this lack of care stems from the fact that 80% of those people can't afford proper nutrition. We hand out a lot of free supplements. The seriousness of the situation hits you.


On the other hand, I completed a behavioral health rotation where I sat and listened to kids talk about their feelings. We frolicked and played outside, played Barbies with the little girls, and talked about boyfriend/girlfriend issues with the teens. Such a different setting from dialysis. Neither gives me strong insight as to what life is like as an RD or how to pass that daunting exam. What I gain are life lessons. I now realize you can’t help everyone. I appreciate the health I have, And finally, I gained tremendous confidence.