Candidate Employer Policy

Definition: This policy applies to organizations that hire a candidate to provide nutritional counseling to its clients. Examples include, but are not limited to:

  • Functional medicine practices headed by a physician

  • Mental health group therapy practices

  • Public health organizations such as WIC and SNAP

Candidate are responsible for securing placement/hire with these organizations. Candidates sign a letter of attestation indicting their understanding of the following:

Legal and Ethical Compliance:

  • The organization can be state-registered for-profit or not-for-profit in good financial standing located within the United States, and must adhere to all relevant legal requirements and ethical standards in the field of nutrition and healthcare.

Compliance with State Licensing Rules:

  • Due to state licensing laws, the CNS candidate can only accrue hours for client work when the client is based in a state where medical nutrition therapy is permitted. An MD/DO may be able to direct the candidate to provide care in states in which they normally would not be eligible to do so due to regulatory requirements, but this time spent is not eligible for hour accrual.

HIPAA Compliance:

  • Organizations must maintain HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) compliance if protected health information (PHI) of beneficiaries/clients is communicated to Clinician's Incubator team or CNS candidates.

Additionally, the following targets are provided to candidates and their hiring manager.

Relationship Management:

  • The Candidate provides their hiring manager name and contact info. Clinician’s Incubator provides a letter to the hiring manager that outlines this policy and identifies them as the point of contact should anything relevant need to be discussed.

Hours Counted

  • The candidate has opportunity to earn hours to fulfill the ACNPE competencies.

Supervision and Mentorship:

  • The external training site understands that the qualified supervisors from Clinician’s Incubator will provide guidance, feedback, and support to CNS candidates throughout their work with the organization’s beneficiaries/clients. It is recommended that the employer provide informed consent to their clients that the candidate is under supervision.

Diversity of Experiences:

  • The training site should offer experiences and opportunities for CNS candidates to gain practical skills and knowledge in different areas of nutrition practice, such as clinical or community nutrition.

Quality of Learning Environment:

  • The organization provides training resources to orient the CNS candidates to the organization’s mission and primary audience needs.

Continuity of Care:

  • If applicable, the training site should demonstrate a commitment to continuity of care for clients/patients, ensuring that CNS candidates have the opportunity to follow up on cases and observe the long-term impact of nutrition interventions.

Professionalism and Ethical Conduct:

  • The organization and its staff should demonstrate professionalism, integrity, and ethical conduct in their interactions with CNS candidates, clients/patients, and other stakeholders involved in the training process.