Penn Nursing Supports Malnutrition Awareness Week
Penn Nursing is a proud sponsor of Malnutrition Awareness Week, September 16-20, 2024! Throughout this time, Penn faculty, staff, students, and alumni can access nutrition and malnutrition related ASPEN webinars at no cost. The various sessions reinforce the significance of nutrition in medical treatment and educate community members on the importance of discussing their nutrition status with their healthcare professionals. Continuing education credits are available through these webinars when you attend them LIVE. Please register using the code MAW-PennNursing.
September 04, 2024
Malnutrition Awareness Week is an international effort to increase the awareness, diagnosis, and treatment of malnutrition in patients. It is an annual, multi-organizational campaign created by the American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (ASPEN) to focus on nutrition as a patient right and its vital role in health and recovery.
Malnutrition, when unrecognized and untreated, results in longer hospital stays for patients, twice the need for rehab or long-term care, and a 2.3 times higher rate of hospital deaths. In addition to its human toll, malnutrition raises hospital costs by 73% and can cost an additional $10,000 in hospital readmission stays.
While older adults are particularly susceptible to malnutrition, others at risk include infants and children. During infancy and early childhood, malnutrition can cause poor growth and impact neurodevelopment. People with infections; those with long-term health conditions including kidney disease, diabetes, and lung disease; and people with cancer, dementia, and other chronic conditions are all at risk for malnutrition. It is important to know the signs and symptoms of malnutrition. If you or your loved one is experiencing any of these, talk to your healthcare provider:
- Unplanned and unexplained weight loss
- Loss of appetite
- Not able to eat or only able to eat small amounts
- Feeling weak or tired
- Swelling or fluid accumulation
For more resources on nutrition, visit www.nutritioncare/KnowTheSigns.
