“We are very excited to welcome Jill to our staff,” said JoAnn Schatz, the Director of Nutritional Services at Elk Regional. “She will be working directly with our patients to ensure that their nutritional needs are being met.”
“It is a pleasure to join the staff at Elk Regional,” Mrs. Smith said. “Patients with compromised nutrition can heal more slowly and can have longer recovery times. These conditions can contribute to extended hospital stays. My work gives me the opportunity to make a difference close to home – and that’s important to me.”
As a clinical dietitian at Elk Regional, Mrs. Smith will conduct nutritional screening assessments, provide nutritional consults as ordered by medical staff, and provide nutrition counseling and education for inpatients. She will also work with patients who have special dietary restrictions and create nutritional plans for patients who are diagnosed with conditions including weight loss, low body mass index, malnutrition, and pressure ulcers.
Eventually, Mrs. Smith will transition into outpatient nutrition.
Mrs. Smith has worked as a clinical dietitian since 2003 at facilities in Clarion, Pa. and in other locations throughout northwestern Pennsylvania.
In 2003, Mrs. Smith earned a degree in Dietetics from Gannon University in Erie, Pa. She holds several professional licenses, including licensure as a Registered Dietitian through the Commission on Dietetics Registration and licensure as a Licensed Dietitian Nutritionist through the Pennsylvania Board of Nursing. She also holds Food Employee Certification through the Bureau of Food Safety at the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.
Mrs. Smith, her husband Travis, and their daughter Ella, live in DuBois.
