Medical Nutrition Therapy

Kris Chiles
Section Administrator

Mental Health & Consumer Services

A Medical Nutrition Therapist assesses the nutritional status of patients. Medical Nutrition Therapy involves the assessment of patient nutritional status followed by treatment, ranging from diet modification to specialized nutrition support, such as determining nutrient needs for enteral and parenteral nutrition, and monitoring to evaluate patient response to such treatment.

• Assessment is defined as the process of evaluating the nutritional status of patients. The assessment includes review and analysis of medical and diet histories, biochemical lab values, and anthropometric measurements to determine nutritional status and appropriate nutritional treatment.
• Patient is defined as a person with a disease, illness, injury, or medical condition for which nutritional interventions are an essential component of standard care.

Consultation: Medical Nutrition Therapy shall be performed under the consultation of a physician licensed in Nebraska.

Licensure Exceptions: The statutes provides several exceptions; one of which states that any person who provides general nutrition services may continue to do so without being licensed.

General nutrition services includes, but is not limited to: 1) identifying the nutritional needs of individuals and groups in relation to normal nutritional requirements; and 2) planning, implementing, and evaluating nutrition education programs for individuals and groups in the selection of food to meet normal nutritional needs throughout the life cycle.

A complete listing of licensure exceptions can be found in Neb. Rev. Stat. § 71-1,287.