From Novice to Expert – Unveiling the Power of Lifelong Learning in Dietetic Practice

Abstract

As healthcare professionals, dietitians have a duty of care to their patients and profession to ensure that they remain aware of changes in dietetic practice. Pre-registration education programmes provide broad training, often aligning with the EFAD Academic Standards, 2018 (www.efad.org/efad-standards) within a limited timeframe that also incorporates practice learning. With experience, dietitians become increasingly skilled and often aspire to move into specialised, consultant or freelance roles. An increasingly popular trend is the development of a portfolio career, which involves engaging in multiple roles with different employers. Lifelong learning (LLL) is integral to every dietitian’s continual practice, and skill competencies are no longer «optional in health care» [1, 2]. Some countries now have specified roles requiring more formal training, such as Advanced Practice roles in the UK (BDA, 2023) (www.bda.uk.com/practice-and-education/nutrition-and-dieteticpractice/dietetic-workforce/advanced-practice.html). LLL is defined diversely across various national contexts and for distinct purposes. The European Commission published «Memorandum on Lifelong Learning» in 2000 defining LLL as «all purposeful learning activity, undertaken on an ongoing basis with the aim of improving knowledge, skills and competence» [3]. Many countries use the term Continuous Professional Development (CPD) which, in the context of healthcare, can be defined as «systematic maintenance, improvement, and continuous acquisition and/or reinforcement of the life-long knowledge, skills and competences of health professionals» [4]. CPD is pivotal to meeting patient, health service delivery, and individual professional learning needs. The term acknowledges not only the wide-ranging competences needed to practice high-quality care delivery but also the multi-disciplinary context of patient care [4, 5]. Recently, some LLL in other employment sections has been recognised through micro-credentials and digital badging. The title of «dietitian/dietician» has been protected by statutory regulation in a number of countries including the United Kingdom, USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand [6], and also Ireland and the Komp Nutr Diet 2023;2:80–82 DOI: 10.1159/000533367