Nutrition and Dietetics

Our team of paediatric dietitians work closely with clinicians in all medical and surgical specialities within Alder Hey, advising on therapeutic diets or nutritional support for our patients.

We cover a wide and varied range of specialist areas including Inherited Metabolic Disorders, Gastroenterology, Nephrology, Cardiology, Surgery, Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU/HDU), Ketogenic, Neurology, Cystic Fibrosis, Cancer, Diabetes, Eating Disorders, Food Allergy, and Complications of Excess Weight.

We work closely with our Alder Hey Community Dietetic team who provide dietetic input for patients in Liverpool and Sefton community.

Meet the Team 

There are 32 members of staff based in Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, with a further 10 members of staff working in our community services. Each team consists of paediatric dietitians, dietetic assistant practitioners, and administration support.

Special Feeds Unit 

We also work with our team of 8 Special Feeds Unit (SFU) staff who are a dedicated team and prepare specialist infant feeds and enteral feeds daily for our inpatients at Alder Hey.

The special feeds unit (SFU) is an integral part of the dietetic department, responsible for the safe preparation of specialised infant formulas and enteral feeds to exacting standards of accuracy, under stringent safety and hygiene conditions which meet the requirements of the 2007 WHO Guidelines for safe Preparation, Storage and Handling of Powdered Infant Formula.

Requests for special infant formulae and enteral feeds should be ordered through the order entry section on Meditech.

Treatment/Clinical Outcomes

As a department, we greatly value feedback from patients and their families and regularly review and comments we receive to help improve our service. Here are some of the positive messages we have received from families and staff:

“I am very grateful to Jenny & all her efforts…Jenny’s reviews and plans have changed the way I am looking at my baby’s nutrition, and made me more knowledgeable & more confident about managing his nutrition at home even through the hard phase of Chemotherapy treatment.”

“We really appreciated the continued care yourself and the service provided…especially as we were not able to provide any local dietician support at that time for a child who really needed it.  I know it was a challenge and we as a team and the family appreciated you taking him on and caring for him.”

“Many thanks, as ever Andrea. I’ve just been singing your praises. You are a fantastic support and do a great job!”

We actively support the training and development of Nutrition and Dietetic students across the North West. We welcome students for their P1 and P2 practical placements and facilitate the acquisition of the clinical skills required for professional registration with the HCPC. Alongside this, we provide face-to-face teaching for specialist Paediatrics as part of the academic programme.

“I absolutely loved my time at Alder Hey. Very sad to leave, felt comfortable there and learnt so much”

Megan P2 student

“I found my time at Alder Hey very useful, informative and well organised. All of the staff members within the dietetic team were very helpful and encourage me to develop my knowledge by asking questions during my time with them. The experience strengthened my desire to become a paediatric dietitian and I feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to spend time with the Alder Hey Dietetic Team.”

Claudia P1 student

Contact Us

Inpatient Dietitians:

8.30am to 4.30pm, Monday to Friday

Tel: 0151 252 5231 or x2231

Community Dietitians:

9.00am to 5.00pm, Monday to Friday (Excluding Bank Holidays)

Tel: 0151 295 3948

Where are we:

The team are located within the hospital building, and we can review your child if a referral is made by an Alder Hey hospital consultant or another Alder Hey healthcare professional involved in your child’s care. This review may take place on the ward, in an outpatient clinic appointment as part of a multi-team review, or dietetic clinic.

The Community Dietetic service is not located within our Children’s Health Campus and are based at a separate site at the Liverpool Innovation Park on Edge Lane. They provide dietetic assessments for patients based in the community in Liverpool and Sefton areas.

Referrals

The inpatient team at Alder Hey accept referrals for patients who are under a consultant within the trust. We do not accept GP referrals for patients requiring dietetic input in the community, these should be directed to our community team.

Families who feel they may benefit from a dietetic review from our inpatient team should discuss it with a healthcare professional involved in their child’s care, such as a consultant or ward nurse. Families in the Liverpool or Sefton community who feel may benefit from a dietetic review should discuss it with their GP or Paediatrician to determine if a referral to community service is required. Following an inpatient stay at Alder Hey, the inpatient team may also refer your child to our community team if continued input is required.