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Chief dietitian vs clinical dietitian

The differences between chief dietitians and clinical dietitians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a chief dietitian and a clinical dietitian. Additionally, a chief dietitian has an average salary of $65,808, which is higher than the $59,133 average annual salary of a clinical dietitian.

The top three skills for a chief dietitian include medical nutrition, nutrition education and quality improvement. The most important skills for a clinical dietitian are patients, patient care, and medical nutrition therapy.

Chief dietitian vs clinical dietitian overview

Chief DietitianClinical Dietitian
Yearly salary$65,808$59,133
Hourly rate$31.64$28.43
Growth rate7%7%
Number of jobs18,74757,500
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 71%Bachelor's Degree, 73%
Average age4242
Years of experience22

Chief dietitian vs clinical dietitian salary

Chief dietitians and clinical dietitians have different pay scales, as shown below.

Chief DietitianClinical Dietitian
Average salary$65,808$59,133
Salary rangeBetween $32,000 And $133,000Between $43,000 And $80,000
Highest paying City-San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state-California
Best paying company-University of California
Best paying industry-Health Care

Differences between chief dietitian and clinical dietitian education

There are a few differences between a chief dietitian and a clinical dietitian in terms of educational background:

Chief DietitianClinical Dietitian
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 71%Bachelor's Degree, 73%
Most common majorDieteticsDietetics
Most common collegeUniversity of Maryland - College ParkUniversity of Maryland - College Park

Chief dietitian vs clinical dietitian demographics

Here are the differences between chief dietitians' and clinical dietitians' demographics:

Chief DietitianClinical Dietitian
Average age4242
Gender ratioMale, 15.5% Female, 84.5%Male, 8.7% Female, 91.3%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 3.6% Hispanic or Latino, 10.7% Asian, 9.7% White, 67.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%Black or African American, 8.6% Unknown, 3.6% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 10.0% White, 65.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage8%8%

Differences between chief dietitian and clinical dietitian duties and responsibilities

Chief dietitian example responsibilities.

  • Manage the anemia status of patients by reviewing necessary lab data and initiating or adjusting medication doses.
  • Monitor adherence to MDS schedule, care plan completion, and DOH regulations.
  • Provide individual and group nutrition counseling, including interactive nutrition and culinary sessions to low-income multicultural communities.
  • Provide clinical nutrition coverage as needed for medical-surgical, telemetry, intensive care unit, behavioral health and rehabilitative floors.

Clinical dietitian example responsibilities.

  • Provide personalize nutrition counseling to clients managing diabetes, lipid disorders, hypertension & obesity.
  • Collaborate with diabetes educator to achieve AADE accreditation for the diabetes education program and to provide education as an instructor.
  • Develop nutrition assessments and provide individual nutrition interventions for post-surgical/medical patients entering rehabilitation.
  • Provide nutritional care for general medical population; assess nutritional status of ICU patients and implement nutritional intervention.
  • Perform nutrition evaluations and education for rehab patients; complete MDS forms and participate in interdisciplinary team meetings.
  • Sole nutrition department member participating in daily and weekly integrative team rounds for oncology and high risk maternity patients.
  • Show more

Chief dietitian vs clinical dietitian skills

Common chief dietitian skills
  • Medical Nutrition, 22%
  • Nutrition Education, 21%
  • Quality Improvement, 17%
  • Clinical Nutrition, 16%
  • Food Service Operations, 14%
  • Educational Materials, 10%
Common clinical dietitian skills
  • Patients, 35%
  • Patient Care, 9%
  • Medical Nutrition Therapy, 7%
  • Home Health, 5%
  • Nutrition Services, 3%
  • Diabetes, 3%

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