Nutrition: More Than Just Food

What you eat and drink can play a huge part in staying healthy. KKV’s Nutrition and Chronic Disease Management Program provides services to make sure our community is knowledgeable about the importance of what they consume every day.   

The Nutrition Team is housed under the Medical Department, but they work with all KKV departments through referrals. “It’s a team effort,” said Nutrition Coordinator and Dietician Sheryl Yoshimura. “It’s a lot of troubleshooting and trying to figure out why the patients are having certain problems.” When a patient comes in to see a KKV provider, the patient receives an assessment and is then often referred to another department for further treatment. Nutrition is an example of how all KKV departments are connected. “Once a patient is referred to us, we can dig deeper and find out other issues they’re having and connect them to other services.”   

The program not only assists with overall dietary needs but also focuses on the relationship between food and chronic disease, and how chronic conditions can be treated more naturally. One key service is the Food Rx Program. The Nutrition Team helps to assemble and deliver produce bags to patients who qualify for the program, which provides fresh produce to individuals to help manage certain illnesses. The team also provides extensive education to patients about chronic conditions such diabetes, high cholesterol, and weight management. “We are a nationally recognized diabetes program. Our staff have specialized training to care for our patients,” explained Sheryl. Staff members work hard to educate patients so they can seek medical help early on. “There are lots of barriers to care in our community, so patients always assume the worst about their illness. They learn that there are lots of ways to treat it before it gets worse.” The Nutrition Team educates both patients and their family members. It’s important for the family to know what kinds of food to provide people with chronic diseases, Alzheimer’s, or Dementia. Staff also work with outside organizations to make it easier for their patients to receive the care they need.   

Sheryl is always looking for opportunities for her team to expand their skills. She prides herself in maintaining a safe, comfortable environment for everyone to grow and learn. One of those opportunities is ‘lunch and learn’ sessions held for her staff. Experts are brought in to help staff members stay up to date with information and training. “I think of myself as the walking dictionary at KKV,” said Medical Assistant A Lien Nick. “We’re so connected, we know how most departments work. Sheryl always pushes us to learn more.”  

The passion and joy that the Nutrition Team brings to KKV is well known among other KKV programs. Team members are driven to help their patients and fellow employees. They all feel they’ve found a family within their program. Marena Enita, a Community Health Worker, says her proudest moments are always when she’s able to assist patients. She also helps providers by contributing as an interpreter. She feels accomplished when her patients say, “oh I understand now, that makes sense” or “okay, I will make that change now! What I was doing before was harming my health.” She told one patient that he still had a chance to make a change to his health, and he was so grateful for her care and said it brought him peace and hope. “His family members said he was so happy to meet with our program and providers and learn he didn't have to do dialysis yet. Patients are often told bad news, but here, we try to meet the patients where they’re at and provide the help and support they need,” said Marena. “It feels good to peel away those barriers and empower our patients to take charge of their health.”   

Sheryl and her team are proud to offer these services to the community and feel so lucky to connect with all departments within KKV. “The value [my team] brings is a different feeling. It’s something money can’t buy,” she says. If you’d like to schedule an appointment with the Nutrition Team, call (808)-791-9464.