Staff Spotlight
Olivia Curl, Home Health Dietitian
Continuing our spotlight of dietitians, we chatted with Olivia Curl, a Home Health Dietitian at Evergreen Community Health Centre.
A day in the life of a Home Health Dietitian
Home Health Dietitians provide services to patients in the home or at a community health centre. Olivia works primarily with homebound clients. She manages their enteral nutrition, educates them on new ileostomy and colostomy care, and helps them target wound healing through nutrition as well as assists with food insecurity.
A typical workday includes following up with patients over the phone, meeting with the healthcare team to review clients progress and results, and visiting clients in their homes.
“It is so humbling to be welcomed into someone’s home! Clients are so appreciative that you have made the trip to see them and that you want to help them. People feel more comfortable at home and are more willing to brainstorm ideas with you. It is also so much more hands-on and I feel that you can make more of an impact. Yesterday, a client and I made a home-blended formula for her tube feed using the ingredients she had in her fridge.”
Olivia shares the most rewarding parts of her job. “It is so exciting and fulfilling when a client can start eating orally again after being tube fed. As the dietitian, I get to support them through this transition. I also get to work the speech-language pathologist to discuss tolerance and diet textures.”
Change to Vancouver Coastal Health
Previously working at the Abbotsford Kidney Care and Dialysis Unit, Olivia decided to move to a new role within Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH). Despite the amazing team and clients at Abbotsford, her long commute every day for three years pushed her to find a job closer to home. “I am so happy I took the risk to change health authorities!”
Working in a new environment can be nerve-wracking, but Olivia found the team culture to be supportive. “I work with an amazing group of dietitians who have truly made the onboarding and training process as smooth as possible. I also have a supportive Practice Lead and Home Health Manager. Something as simple as a check-in goes such a long way.”
Olivia also quickly adopted the VCH values. She is constantly learning something new while working with clients of different ages, backgrounds and cultures. Additionally, Olivia feels encouraged to pursue further education in dietetics and home health by reading new literature as well as participating in webinars and workshops.
Fun fact: Olivia has a cat named Franklin and his favourite food is spinach!
Join the team
Explore the current career opportunities for Dietitians at Vancouver Coastal Health.