Nutritional Screening Tools

Nutrition risk is not always visible when an adult arrives in hospital. Unintentional weight loss suggests a recent reduction in body stores, while eating less than usual for more than one week suggests that intake has been inadequate over time. Together, these changes identify patients who need a closer nutrition review. Screening is a brief risk-identification step, not a diagnosis of malnutrition and not a substitute for a comprehensive assessment. The Canadian Nutrition Screening Tool (CNST) is used for all adult hospital patients within 24 hours of admission. The RPN completes the screen within the admission workflow and communicates the result according to the organisation’s established process. A structured screen matters because hospital malnutrition can be missed when attention is focused on the admitting problem. The result determines whether the patient needs prompt assessment by a registered dietitian.