Research Dietitian 3 - Nashville, TN

Cardiovascular Medicine - Scientist

The Research Dietitian 3 serves as a key member of an interdisciplinary team focused on improving health outcomes for pregnant, postpartum, and high-risk women through evidence-based lifestyle interventions. This role provides individualized counseling, coaching, and guidance for participants enrolled in the program.

Working closely with physicians, nurses, social workers, and research staff, the Research Dietitian 3 will conduct comprehensive assessments, develop personalized wellness plans, monitor patient progress, and support women through various life stages including pregnancy, postpartum recovery, and menopause. This position combines direct patient care, health coaching, and research support within an established infrastructure designed to advance women's health.

The majority of time will be spent meeting directly with patients, providing education and coaching, monitoring outcomes, and collaborating with the multidisciplinary care team.

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Preferred Skills and Experience:

• Registered Dietitian (RD/RDN) experience in clinical, outpatient, preventive cardiology, or wellness settings.
• Exercise physiology, exercise therapy, fitness coaching, personal training, or cardiac rehabilitation experience.
• Experience working with women's health populations, including pregnancy and postpartum care.
• Strong patient education and health coaching experience.
• Experience utilizing motivational interviewing and behavior-change techniques.
• Ability to bridge nutrition and physical activity recommendations into practical lifestyle plans.
• Experience counseling patients with cardiovascular disease, hypertension, diabetes, obesity, or other chronic health conditions.
• Knowledge of cardiovascular risk reduction and preventive health strategies.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
• Plans and implements strategies that contribute to the success of team research goals and objectives including convening of regular research staff meetings and providing continuing education opportunities for research staff members for opportunities to read and discuss pertinent current research from peer-reviewed nutrition, medical and scientific journals.
• Assists in consultations for study protocols, performance evaluations, accounting and budget development.
• Calibrates, maintains and tests equipment used in diet/nutrition studies and projects. Trains other research personnel in the use of valid and reliable methodology.
• Mentors medical students in nutrition research methods and supervises daily research project activities.
• Assesses staffing needs and makes recommendations for additional personnel and other budgetary issues.
• The responsibilities listed are a general overview of the position and additional duties may be assigned.

TECHNICAL CAPABILITIES
• Dietetic Patient Assessment (Intermediate): Knowledge and ability to collect data about an individual's health state, the purpose of which is to make a judgment or diagnosis.
• Patient Counseling (Intermediate): Interactive helping process focusing on the needs, problems, or feelings of the patient and significant others to enhance or support coping, problem solving, and interpersonal relationships.
• Nutrition Therapy (Intermediate): Administration of food and fluids to support metabolic processes of a patient who is malnourished or at high risk for becoming malnourished.
• Evidence-Based Nutrition Practice (Intermediate): Improve patient outcomes based on the best available evidence including research, national guidelines, policies, consensus statements, expert opinion and quality improvement data.

Our supporting roles are the core of all we do at Vanderbilt Health, helping us personalize the patient experience through our caring spirit and distinctive capabilities. We support each other and encourage excellence among all who are part of our workforce. High-achieving employees stay at VUMC for professional growth, appreciation of benefits, and a sense of community and purpose.

We support each other and encourage excellence among all who are part of our workforce as we place a priority on designing with and for our patients and families.

Core Accountabilities:

Organizational Impact: Independently delivers on objectives with understanding of how they impact the results of own area/team and other related teams. Problem Solving/ Complexity of work: Utilizes multiple sources of data to analyze and resolve complex problems; may take a new perspective on existing solution. Breadth of Knowledge: Has advanced knowledge within a professional area and basic knowledge across related areas. Team Interaction: Acts as a "go-to" resource for colleagues with less experience; may lead small project teams.

Supporting Colleagues: - Develops Self and Others: Invests time, energy, and enthusiasm in developing self/others to help improve performance e and gain knowledge in new areas. - Builds and Maintains Relationships: Maintains regular contact with key colleagues and stakeholders using formal and informal opportunities to expand and strengthen relationships. - Communicates Effectively: Recognizes group interactions and modifies one's own communication style to suit different situations and audiences. Delivering Excellent Services: - Serves Others with Compassion: Seeks to understand current and future needs of relevant stakeholders and customizes services to better address them. - Solves Complex Problems: Approaches problems from different angles; Identifies new possibilities to interpret opportunities and develop concrete solutions. - Offers Meaningful Advice and Support: Provides ongoing support and coaching in a constructive manner to increase employees' effectiveness. Ensuring High Quality: - Performs Excellent Work: Engages regularly in formal and informal dialogue about quality; directly addresses quality issues promptly. - Ensures Continuous Improvement: Applies various learning experiences by looking beyond symptoms to uncover underlying causes of problems and identifies ways to resolve them. - Fulfills Safety and Regulatory Requirements: Understands all aspects of providing a safe environment and performs routine safety checks to prevent safety hazards from occurring. Managing Resources Effectively: - Demonstrates Accountability: Demonstrates a sense of ownership, focusing on and driving critical issues to closure. - Stewards Organizational Resources: Applies understanding of the departmental work to effectively manage resources for a department/area. - Makes Data Driven Decisions: Demonstrates strong understanding of the information or data to identify and elevate opportunities. Fostering Innovation: - Generates New Ideas: Proactively identifies new ideas/opportunities from multiple sources or methods to improve processes beyond conventional approaches. - Applies Technology: Demonstrates an enthusiasm for learning new technologies, tools, and procedures to address short-term challenges. - Adapts to Change: Views difficult situations and/or problems as opportunities for improvement; actively embraces change instead of emphasizing negative elements.

Responsibilities:

Certifications:

LIC-Licensed Dietician/Nutritionist - Tennessee, Registered Dietician - Commision on Dietetic Registration

Work Experience:

Relevant Work Experience

Experience Level:

5 years

Bachelor's

This role offers the opportunity to make a meaningful impact within Vanderbilt Health, supported by a comprehensive benefits package which may include health, disability, retirement and/or wellness offerings to enhance your well-being and professional growth.

Vanderbilt Health is committed to fostering an environment where everyone has the chance to thrive and is committed to the principles of equal opportunity.  EOE/Vets/Disabled.