INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — WISH-TV is committed to focusing on family and the community, and that includes working to make sure every family gets healthy meals.

One aspect of nutrition that many don’t think about is how it can play a role in patient healing.

Nancy Strange, a senior clinical dietician at IU Health Methodist Hospital’s Comprehensive Wound Center, joined News 8 on Daybreak to discuss how nutritional deficiencies can be identified and dealt with.

“Nutrition is the ability to obtain or provide adequate nutrients to support health and function in the body,” Strange said. “Our bodies are built to heal if there’s an injury, so we need nutrition.”

The Comprehensive Wound Center at IU Methodist says it’s one of five hospitals in the country to employ a full-time dietitian in a wound care clinic.

Strange’s job is to create nutrition care plans for each patient. A part of that is addressing deficiencies through complete nutritional assessments which involve physical examination. “We are seeing routinely a very high rate of vitamin-mineral deficiencies in this patient population,” she said.

Strange says protein is another common deficiency. Lab testing follows all suspected deficiencies to ensure a proper nutrition care plan is created.

“Our goal is to get that wound healed as quickly as possible, so we don’t increase the risk of infection,” Strange said.

For more information, check out the full interview at the top of the page.

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