Teaching and funding nutrition instruction in family practice education

Nutrition instruction is accepted as an important element of physician education, but is often not a formal part of medical school or residency training. Personnel and funding are often cited as the major factors that limit nutrition instruction. Because family medicine residency programs have been in the forefront of nutrition instruction, a nationwide survey of these programs was conducted to examine the nature, staffing, and funding mechanisms for nutrition education. Results of the 1986 survey reported in this study indicate that registered dietitians were available to 89% of the programs in the United States and are supported by a combination of funding sources. The implications of these findings are discussed.