Whatʹs in store for medical students? Awareness and utilization of expert nutrition guidelines among medical school preceptors

Background. Instruction of physicians and other health professionals in medical nutrition sciences is among the expert recommendations to promote population health and reduce risks for cancer and other major causes of morbidity and mortality in the population. However, formal training in nutrition in United States medical schools is still lacking compared to the gains in basic and applied medical nutrition sciences. We sought to understand the awareness and current utilization of expert nutrition recommendations and practice guidelines among medical student faculty preceptors. Methods. We surveyed the teaching faculty who precept for first-, second-, and third-year medical students in two required courses at Boston University. The instrument queried preceptor awareness and current utilization of expert nutrition recommendations, nutritional management practice guidelines, as well as faculty–student interactions regarding patient nutritional education and counseling. Results. Of 187 faculty surveyed, 139 (74%) responded. Faculty reported using 2.3 expert guideline sources (N = 111; SD = 1.8; RANGE = 0–8) but 83% had considered only one or no sources or did not remember what guidelines they had used. Eighty-four percent of preceptors expected students to routinely discuss nutritional practices with patients and/or their families; however, less than half of preceptors routinely provided feedback to students on patient nutritional education or counseling strategies. Conclusion. Our findings suggest gaps in faculty awareness and utilization of expert nutrition recommendations and practice guidelines relating to cancer and other chronic disease-risk reduction and population health promotion, underscoring the need for improvements in faculty and medical student training in basic and applied medical nutrition sciences.