Credentialed Dietetics Practitioners with Disabilities Get the Job Done - Paperback

by Suzanne Domel Baxter (Editor), Cheryl Iny Harris (Editor)

"An insightful healthcare guide to broadening professional understandings of what competence looks like." - Foreword Reviews

Dietetics practitioners are food and nutrition experts who help people live healthier lives-working in hospitals, research labs, schools, sports teams, community programs, and more. Yet despite the diversity of the populations they serve, the dietetics workforce remains predominantly female, white, and able-bodied. Only 2% of dietetics practitioners identify as having a disability, compared to 29% of U.S. adults.

This gap must change.

Credentialed Dietetics Practitioners with Disabilities Get the Job Done is a powerful and inspiring collection of autobiographies from 15 credentialed practitioners with disabilities. Through their stories, readers gain an inside look at navigating:

• • College and academic accommodations
  • Supervised practice internships
  • National credentialing exams
  • Employment, workplace accommodations, and disability disclosure
  • Disability culture related to food, nutrition, and eating

These practitioners represent a wide range of disabilities, including cerebral palsy, spinal cord injuries, vision and hearing impairments, mobility disabilities, and chronic illnesses.

In addition to personal narratives, the book includes eight educational chapters covering:

• • The dietetics profession and how to become a practitioner
  • The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
  • The Disabilities in Nutrition and Dietetics Member Interest Group
  • Disability resources and statistics
  • State vocational rehabilitation programs and centers for independent living

This book is an essential resource for:

• • Individuals with disabilities exploring careers in dietetics or healthcare
  • Dietetics students and interns
  • Educators, preceptors, and supervisors
  • Career counselors and disability services professionals
  • Allies, family members, and colleagues of people with disabilities

All royalties are donated to initiatives that expand inclusion of practitioners with disabilities in the dietetics workforce and educate the dietetics workforce about disabilities.