Registered Dietitian
Weekly outpatient therapy isn't always enough, and a trip to the ER isn't the only answer. Patients and their families rely on Compass Health Center when in crisis – every day, we help people overcome depression, anxiety, suicidality, obsessions/compulsions, trauma, chronic pain, and other obstacles in order for our patients to live freely.
About This Role
As a Registered Dietitian in the Over-18 Eating Disorders Program, you’ll provide nutrition therapy and support to patients whose relationship with food is the primary target of treatment. You’ll meet with patients individually, facilitate clinical nutrition groups, and provide direct support during meals and snacks. You’ll partner closely with Primary Therapists, Group Therapists, Family Therapists, and Prescribers to ensure comprehensive and compassionate care. Reports to the Associate Director of the Eating Disorders Program, with a dotted line clinically to the Director of the Eating Disorders Program, who oversees all clinical aspects of the program.
What You'll Do:
Nutrition Assessment and Care Planning
Complete nutrition assessments at admission, including all aspects of nutrition care process—diagnosis, intervention, monitoring, and evaluation planning
Develop individualized meal plans that support nutritional rehabilitation and progressive exposure to avoided and feared foods
Establish and revise individually determined, biologically appropriate weight ranges in collaboration with the treatment team
Collaborate with nursing and prescribers to assess and monitor ongoing medical status, including weights, vital signs, and lab values, and adjust nutrition interventions accordingly
Revise the nutrition plan as intake, medical status, and treatment targets change
Individual Nutrition Sessions
Meet with patients individually to review intake, adjust the meal plan, and set nutrition-related treatment targets
Address food rules, ritualized eating, compensatory behaviors, and avoidance directly
Support provision of nutrition interventions, including structured food exposure planning
Address exercise, movement, and compensatory activity in collaboration with the treatment team
Prepare patients for independent eating at step-down and discharge, including grocery preparation and restaurant planning
Group Facilitation and Eating Support
Facilitate clinical nutrition groups within the program curriculum
Facilitate applied nutrition groups, including in vivo food-based interventions
Provide required coverage during supported meals and snacks
Coach patients through meal completion, distress, and post-meal urges
Communicate intake and behavioral observations to the treatment team
Care Coordination
Partner with the Primary Therapist to align nutrition targets with the case formulation and treatment targets
Contribute nutrition and medical observations during interdisciplinary rounds
Serve as the program’s resource on nutrition status and needs for prescribers, nursing, and clinical staff
Provide nutrition education to families and support people in partnership with the Family Therapist
Coordinate with outpatient dietitians and medical providers through nutrition aftercare handoff
Contribute nutrition documentation supporting initial and continued insurance authorization
Program Operations
Participate in required program training, fidelity monitoring, supervision, and consultation
Complete required documentation throughout treatment
Contribute to development of program nutrition standards, meal structure, curriculum development and revision, and food sourcing practices
Other duties, as assigned
Who You Are:
Credentials and Experience
Master’s degree in dietetics or related field, or bachelor’s degree if licensed prior to 2024 (required)
Registered Dietitian credentialed through the Commission on Dietetic Registration (required)
State licensure or certification as required for practice
2+ years of experience as a Registered Dietitian, with experience in eating disorder treatment (required)
Experience in PHP, IOP, residential, or inpatient setting (preferred)
Skills and Approach (preferred)
Practices from a weight-inclusive framework
Adopts an "all foods fit" approach toward clinical nutrition
Comfortable providing nutrition care in a behavioral treatment context, where the meal plan is an exposure rather than only a prescription
Able to hold the meal plan under patient distress without negotiating, accommodating, or reassuring
Recognizes how co-occurring OCD, trauma, and mood symptoms present around food, and adjusts approach accordingly
Comfortable with medical acuity and with escalating medical concerns promptly
Works within a defined curriculum and fidelity expectations rather than an idiosyncratic model
Practices as an independent clinical discipline and collaborates with therapists as peers
Seeks and uses supervision and consultation
We know job descriptions can be intimidating, so if this sounds like an opportunity for you, please don't hesitate to apply!
Who We Are
Compass Health Center is a recognized leader in crisis-level mental health, bringing passion, connection, and patient-centered care to the Partial Hospitalization and Intensive Outpatient space (PHP/IOP). Based in Chicagoland, we serve hundreds of patients every day, ranging from ages 5 through adulthood, in our onsite facilities or through our flourishing virtual programming. Compass fills a critical gap between outpatient and inpatient care through an intermediate level of Behavioral Healthcare.
A few more things we want you to know: our values are super important to us, and hopefully will be to you, too. Cultural humility, teamwork, continuous improvement, connection, patient centered care, passion, innovation, and agility should be your power sources. Joining Compass is an opportunity to feel fulfilled through a joint mission towards healing our communities.
Benefits & Perks
We know that you will be dedicated to your purpose here. We look at that investment as a two-way street. We are proud to offer plenty of space for growth, and opportunities to pursue continuous development within our organization.
For eligible positions, our other benefits include: comprehensive medical/dental/vision plans, 401k program with company matching, generous PTO (including competitive parental leave after 1 year of employment), and continuous training through CEU seminars and volunteering opportunities.
What’s Next?
Compass is committed to cultivating diverse and dynamic teams who exude passion for their craft, so whether or not you check all the boxes, we encourage you to apply – we’d be grateful to hear from you!