Responsibilities and current status of foodservice dietitian in Taiwan

This study investigated the attitudes of quantity-food educators, employers/managers, and food-service dietitians toward the responsibilities of food-service dietitians in Taiwan. A survey was conducted using a self-developed questionnaire with 6 major issues and 39 sub-items. Subjects included in this study were quantity-food educators (n = 18), employers/managers (n = 215), and food-service dietitians (n = 232). The numbers of responses from quantity-food educators, employers/managers, and food-service dietitians were 14 (77.8%), 39 (15.8%), and 50 (22.4%), respectively. Results showed that 33 sub-items were considered important by quantity-food educators, employers/managers, and food-service dietitians. The importance of the 6 major issues were in the decreasing ordered of (1) food preparation and supply management, (2) promotion of nutritional and hygienic safety education, (3) customer service and product marketing and development, (4) dining equipment and finan cial control, (5) menu design and assessment, and (6) department organization and human resources management. Results indicated that the average income and job benefits for quantity-food dietitians were significantly lower than those for dietitians working in public schools (p <0.05). Twenty percent of quantity-food dietitians were satisfied with their work achievements. However, most subjects were disappointed by the educational programs provided by schools and associations of nutrition-related workers.