The Public Health Nutrition Specialist Group recognises that public health dietitians need to sustain and develop their public health competencies as well as their dietetic skills. The group will focus their efforts in sourcing appropriate public health development activities and opportunities through access to multi-disciplinary training.
Although Dietitians require no specific training to call themselves a Public Health Dietitian, there are a few qualifications which may help enhance your skills and increase your recognition as an expert in your field.
The BDA Public Health Specialist Group has developed a range of resources for members to use:
- Enhanced Public Health Dietitian Job Description based on the Public Health Skills and Knowledge Framework
- Key Facts Sheet for Public Health Dietetics
Both the UK Public Health Registrar (UKPHR) and the Faculty of Public Health (FPH) offer registration schemes for public health professionals as outlined below.
UK Public Health Register (UKPHR)
The BDA Public Health Nutrition Specialist Group is part of the UKPHR Consultative Forum and supports UKPHR in the development of a register for public health professionals. This is multi-disciplinary in nature, encompassing the whole of public health practice and brings together individuals from diverse backgrounds.
UKPHR has a single, overriding objective: to promote public safety and public confidence in public health practice in the UK through independent regulation. UKPHR has two levels of registration, specialist and practitioner. Whilst specialist registration is the more demanding of the two, both schemes involve a rigorous process of assessment, verification and evaluation. Please note, that you may not need to be registered on a scheme to attend the training session they put on. Please contact your regional Public Health Team for more information. For more information on the UKPHR scheme please see their website or contact Melissa Little at [email protected]
Faculty of Public Health (FPH)
The FPH offers various membership schemes based on level of specialism, skill and achieved competancies. Most Public Health Dietitians will be eligible for membership at the practitioner level although they also have student and associate memberships available for those they don’t meet eligibility criteria for practitioners. For more information on the FPH membership schemes please see the website or contact Melissa Little at [email protected]
Other sources of training and career guidance
- The Open University has free courses in various public health disciplines - search public health on their website
- There is free learning available from Health Knowledge
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NHS Careers information about Public Health roles in general
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In Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland you may find more NHS 'Public Health Dietitian' roles than in England. Dietitians can also apply for roles open to other NHS public health professionals such as:
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These roles often sit within the Local Authority
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Dietitians can also apply for the Public Health Speciality Training to become a Public Health Consultant. This is the same training programme as for Doctors. There is some guidance on the application process here
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Dietitians may wish to pursue research / clinical academic careers in Public Health
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There are also Public Health roles in the charity sector (e.g. Sustain, British Heart Foundation, Diabetes UK), not for profit sector (e.g. Bremner & Co.), and private sector (e.g. Momenta Newcastle)
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Volunteering - e.g. for the BDA Public Health Specialist Group or Public Health charities