Here Comes the Sun

On my first day at Baptist Health Madisonville (BHM) as the food service intern, the Beatles came on the speaker rejoicing the great song, “Here Comes the Sun.” Entertained, but ultimately confused, I asked the hot production cook, Sam, what exactly was going on. Sam told me that the song plays over the entire hospital when a patient diagnosed with COVID-19 gets to leave the hospital and go home. She said that they don’t hear it too often; I took that as a sign to keep my own good health in mind and allow the sun to stay throughout my entire FSSM rotation. I can only imagine how a patient with COVID-19 might feel hearing these words:

"Little darling, the smile's returning to the faces Little darling, it seems like years since it's been here"

As most dietitians and food service employees know, food service can at times be a crazy environment with lots of hard working employees. From watching the food service staff at my last hospital site where I was doing my clinical rotation, the kitchen employees were exhausted and felt little appreciation for their daily work. Fortunately, and to my surprise, the food service environment here is full of encouragement and appreciation for one another. I followed each and every position during my first week here, and everyone worked so well together.

Starting on Monday, I went through BHM’s orientation with a lovely woman who immediately made Lexi and I feel welcomed. Lexi, a fellow UK CP dietetic intern, is doing her clinical rotation here; It has been great having someone to be introduced with into this environment. I then went down and got straight to reading the policies and procedures of the company that owns the food service system here: Morrison's Health Care. This helped to complete one of the first competencies: CRDN 1.1 Select indicators of program quality and/or customer service and measure achievement of objectives. The program quality here is evidently above average, and you can see it when you first walk through the door.

I gradually met everyone in the department as I worked alongside each position. I watched tray line service each day, and I will be doing so from here on out. Coming into the dietetic internship, I have had quite a lot of food allergy experience, which has come to be useful throughout this rotation. My preceptor, Lori, would like me to watch tray line and keep an eye out on the high-risk patients who have food allergies, while answering any questions that the PDAs (Patient Dining Associates) may have about specific allergies, ingredients, or food products in general. My assistance on the tray line helps to fulfill this competency: CRDN 4.3 Conduct clinical and customer service quality management activities. There may only be a handful of things that I have full confidence in, but my knowledge for food allergy information is one of them. I am excited to have this role to help out the employees.

One fascinating allergy that not too many people fully understand is the alpha-gal allergy, or alpha-gal syndrome (AGS). In unfortunate situations, the CDC states that “growing evidence suggests that AGS may be triggered by the bite of a lone star or black-legged tick” (2020). Most commonly occurring in the southeastern part of the U.S., a tick bite can trigger this serious allergic reaction in certain people. AGS may occur after eating red meat or being exposed to products containing alpha-gal, which is a sugar molecule found in most mammals. The symptoms/reactions of AGS include rash, hives, nausea and vomiting, difficulty breathing, and more. Oddly enough, the symptoms most commonly appear 3-6 hours after eating meat or an alpha-gal containing product. Red meat is the most common food to cause an allergic reaction, but it varies per person affected. At BHM, the kitchen staff is great about displaying and providing caution for allergies, especially alpha-gal, since it is so common here.

Throughout the week, I worked with the women and staff in the retail department that serve food to the rest of the hospital staff. I worked with the cold production women and the bakers. I worked with the hot production staff and all the cooks. Everyone was more than kind to me and tried to teach me their own styles and ways of getting the jobs done. It was a great way to familiarize myself with the department and learn every employee by name.

Since this rotation is three hours away from my home in Lexington, I was a tad uncertain of what this town would be like. Fortunately, with the staff here, my helpful preceptor, this appealing little town, and my own apartment, I have felt greeted and accepted since the moment I got here.

I am excited to see what all my future opportunities hold at Baptist Health Madisonville

for the next eight weeks!

"Here comes the sun, doo, dun, doo, do Here comes the sun, and I say It's all right"

References:

Alpha-gal allergy. (2020, October 06). Retrieved April 08, 2021, from https://www.cdc.gov/ticks/alpha- gal/index.html

Alpha-gal Syndrome Info-graph [Digital image]. (n.d.). Retrieved April 08, 2021, from https://tickedoffmastcells.org/2018/12/26/what-is-alpha-gal-syndrome/