All Dietitians

Curry Dish with Pineapple Rice and Old-Fashioned Plum Cake by Susan from Oklahoma

Turkey, veggies and spices galore—Curry Dish with Pineapple Rice has everything to please your taste buds. Be sure to leave room for dessert, because DaVita dietitian, Susan from Oklahoma, also provides a kidney-friendly recipe for Old-Fashioned Plum Cake. 

Susan may have lived in Oklahoma for the last 26 years, but she’s also resided in Kansas, Missouri, California, Florida and New Mexico. Susan’s aunt was a dietitian, which sparked her interested in nutrition and food science. She switched from math to dietetics when she realized the science of eating was more applicable to daily life. Her master’s degree and internship were completed at Kansas University Medical Center. When a hospital renal position opened up, Susan says it allowed her to focus on a specialty area rather than general hospital coverage.

Susan says, “I’m always trying to find fresh, new ideas and ways to motivate teammates, patients and myself. My biggest reward is seeing a difference in how patients feel as well as hearing their appreciation.“ Susan tries to show a caring attitude while providing educational tools. “I also enjoy problem solving—each patient is a special, unique individual.”

“The single most important thing patients can do to improve their health is to learn the most they can about the disease, so they are empowered to make wise choices. Most people learn by looking and touching, rather than just hearing or reading, so we have fun activities like “Bone Bingo” and the “DaVita Store,” shares Susan. “Another activity we have done is to have patients examine the actual packages of enhanced versus non-enhanced meat and select the most appropriate for dialysis patients. They learned how very small print on a label can be easily overlooked.”

Susan has worked at DaVita for seven years and is enthusiastic about the educational opportunities and support. She says, “A lot of things have changed since I first started in dialysis 26-years ago. “Susan recalls a funny comment from an elderly, female patient when she first introduced herself as a dietitian and the patient’s response was a sarcastic, “Oh happy day.” Susan says, “She turned out to be a delightful patient who typically did very well with her diet and treatments.”

“My home center is relatively new, but growing rapidly. We have a group of caring and dedicated teammates that take fantastic care of patients. A walking and bicycle trail leads to the center that is very beautiful,” states Susan.

Set your beautiful table and serve Curry Dish with Pineapple Rice, and Old-Fashioned Plum Cake for dessert. You’ll enjoy the benefits of Susan’s testing and retesting versions of these recipes for nearly thirty years. They’re tastes that ace the test of time. 

Recipe 

• Curry Turkey Dish with Pineapple Rice 
• Old-Fashioned Plum Cake