Diet Tech

HCA Healthcare • Austin, TX

1d

About The Position

The Diet Tech performs clerical and food-service coordination tasks that support accurate patient diet orders and meal preparation at St. David's Medical Center. The role maintains current patient diet information, processes orders between hospital and food-service computer systems, prepares diet censuses and reports, and coordinates with nursing units, dietitians, cooks, supervisors, and other hospital staff.

The Diet Tech also supports patient meal ordering by answering calls, communicating nutritional restrictions, preparing and highlighting tray tickets, and helping ensure each patient receives the prescribed diet and tray. The position requires organized, timely work, strong guest relations and phone etiquette, knowledge of call-center tasks and downtime procedures, and a neat and orderly diet office. Additional duties include reporting equipment problems, collecting calorie counts when the diet tech is unavailable, assisting with tray-line tasks, and completing other assigned work.

Employees are expected to support St. David's Healthcare's mission, vision, values, and goals; follow hospital and departmental procedures and service-excellence programs; comply with ethics, safety, security, and employment requirements; and contribute to exceptional care and customer service.

Requirements

• High school graduate or equivalent, or a minimum of five years of dietary experience in lieu of a diploma or GED.
• Food Handler Certification.
• Follow hospital and departmental policies and procedures, service-excellence programs, the Ethics and Compliance Program, and patient and employee safety and security policies.
• Meet employment requirements for license or certification, annual education, and vaccine-preventable disease and annual flu requirements.

Nice To Haves

• One year of experience in a healthcare institution as a Diet Technician.
• Associate degree in Nutrition.

Responsibilities

• Obtain and maintain current patient diet information, including retrieving diet orders from Meditech and entering them into Computrition in a timely manner.
• Obtain computerized diet censuses before each meal, record the dietary census, and post it for dietary staff each morning.
• Call nursing units to clarify diet information and inform the supervisor about patients occupying luxury suites.
• Follow diet-office computer downtime procedures and inform the supervisor about patient meal concerns and STAT orders.
• Communicate nutrition education needs and tube-feeding substitution needs to dietitians, and provide tube-feeding and supplement information to nourishment staff.
• Run Computrition reports at designated times to verify diet orders and menu selections.
• Receive patient meal orders through the phone system, answer calls using designated scripts, and explain nutritional restrictions as needed.
• Run and assemble patient tray tickets in the assigned order before tray-line start time, highlighting special diet orders and services.
• Inform cooks and supervisors about special food items requested by patients.
• Communicate and cooperate with hospital personnel and food-services staff to ensure patients receive the prescribed diet and tray.
• Answer calls from nursing and other hospital personnel and relay necessary information to appropriate staff.
• Maintain excellent phone etiquette with patients, families, nursing staff, doctors, and other callers.
• Remain knowledgeable about call-center tasks and assist coworkers in completing daily work.
• Report equipment problems to appropriate staff as soon as they occur.
• Keep the diet office neat, clean, and organized, and complete assignments before the end of each shift.
• Assist patient-services supervisors with tray-line tasks as needed.
• Collect calorie counts when the diet tech is unavailable.
• Complete assigned duties enthusiastically and in a timely manner, including miscellaneous duties as assigned.

Benefits

• Medical, prescription drug, dental, vision, behavioral health, and telemedicine coverage.
• Wellbeing support, including free counseling and referral services.
• Paid time off, paid family leave, long- and short-term disability coverage, and leaves of absence.
• 401(k) plan with a 100% match on 3% to 9% of pay, based on years of service.
• Employee Stock Purchase Plan, flexible spending accounts, preferred banking partnerships, retirement readiness tools, rollover support, and financial wellbeing counseling.
• Tuition assistance, student loan assistance, certification support, dependent scholarships, and a partnership with Galen College of Nursing.
• Fertility and family-building benefits and adoption assistance.
• Life insurance and supplemental health protection plans.
• Auto and home insurance, legal counseling, identity theft protection, and consumer discounts.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: High school or GED