Allied Health Discipline
Evidence-Based Practice for
Dietetics in Australia
Accredited Practising Dietitians (APDs) in Australia operate under the Dietitians Australia (DA) standards and are guided by the Australian Dietary Guidelines (NHMRC). The dietetic evidence base is extensive, spanning medical nutrition therapy in hospital settings to community and population health nutrition. Evidence informs practice across malnutrition screening, parenteral and enteral nutrition, diabetes management, renal dietetics, and eating disorder treatment. OpenBook Clinical enables APDs to rapidly access graded evidence from Cochrane, PubMed, and Australian clinical guidelines.
Key Clinical Conditions
- Malnutrition and nutritional risk in hospital and aged care
- Type 2 diabetes — medical nutrition therapy
- Chronic kidney disease (CKD) — renal dietetics
- Inflammatory bowel disease — Crohn's and ulcerative colitis
- Eating disorders — anorexia, bulimia, ARFID
- Cardiovascular disease — lipid management
- Obesity and weight management
- Paediatric nutrition — failure to thrive, food allergy
Key Assessment Tools
- Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool (MUST)
- Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA) — older adults
- Subjective Global Assessment (SGA)
- International Dysphagia Diet Standardisation Initiative (IDDSI)
Databases Searched
- Cochrane Metabolic and Endocrine Disorders Group
- PubMed / MEDLINE (nutrition and dietetics)
- Evidence Analysis Library (Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics)
- NHMRC Australian Dietary Guidelines
Australian Guidelines
- NHMRC Australian Dietary Guidelines (2013, revised evidence update 2023)
- Diabetes Australia — Management of Type 2 Diabetes
- KDIGO Clinical Practice Guideline for CKD Nutrition
- Dietitians Australia — Evidence-Based Practice Guidelines
Ready to search the Dietetics evidence base?
OpenBook Clinical searches 35 million papers across PubMed, Cochrane, and Australian guidelines. AI-synthesised summaries. Evidence graded by quality. Free to try.