As part of the interprofessional learning collaboration between IMU Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Dietetics with Nutrition (IMU) final year students and Rutgers School of Health Professions (SHP) Master of Science in Clinical Nutrition students, a joint case round based on the theme ‘Malnutrition’ was held via Zoom on 4 May 2023 at 8:00 am, Malaysian time.
The session was aimed to provide both parties with an insight into the clinical practices and how we can further improve or utilise the acquired knowledge. Hence, to make the session effective, one student from each university had the opportunity to represent their respective university by presenting a case that was managed during a clinical placement.
‘I was fortunate to be able to grasp this opportunity. Initially, I was overwhelmed by this huge responsibility to represent my cohort, but my friends, supervisor, and lecturers guided me and provided constructive feedback. In short, their motivation and encouragement aided me to present efficiently on the case titled ‘Nutrient Optimisation in Severe Malnutrition Pre-surgery of Total Hip Replacement in the Inpatient Setting’,” says Mariyam Thaima (DN119 cohort).
After the presentation, the students were divided into smaller groups and discussed the similarities and variation in different aspects of the cases in terms of nutritional assessment, diagnosis, and intervention.
Based on the discussions between both groups of students from IMU and Rutgers University, it was observed that what we have learned in IMU were at par with the level of other world-class universities.
Overall, the session was fruitful and allowed me to gain more confidence in public speaking. This interprofessional learning also provides us, the final year Dietetics students an opportunity to broaden our knowledge on nutrition related topics, and to step out of our comfort zone by being more vocal during discussions. Therefore, it is my advice to my fellow junior Dietetics peers to grab any similar opportunities arranged by IMU as this will aid in developing our verbal and non-verbal skills.
Written by Mariyam Thaima Mohamed Usham
