Summer Dialysis Bulletin Board

Summer Sizzle Dialysis Bulletin Board: Summer ideas for grilling, picnics, salt swaps, and foods to limit

I’m a little bit late adding this board this month. We had some printer problems and then, well, life happened. But enough! This is a friendly, bright bulletin board for summertime at your dialysis unit.

I didn’t include anything about fluid control on this board, but that certainly would not be amiss!

Grilling Greats

This was supposed to be up for fourth of July (see above on “printer problems”) but still helpful nonetheless. Grilling season is pretty much year round in Texas so hoping to generate some fun new ideas for my patients beyond just burgers and hot dogs.

Of note, I did put the Hebrew National® hot dogs on my board. Yes, they are salty. But they don’t have phosphate additives. Probably one of the very few brands of hot dogs without phosphorus. Many patients are glad to find a brand that doesn’t overburden them with phos.

Picnic Picks

This could also be titled “Potluck Picks” if you want to focus on more barbecue side dishes. Lots of people go to family reunions and other parties during the summer so having some side-dish ideas is helpful. I always try to emphasize picking macaroni salad over potato salad at a picnic or potluck and bringing something they love to eat.

Salt Swaps & Watch Out!

I added just 4 simple grilling spice mixtures for the salt swaps. I kept it simple and direct for this board. I know my patients love to grill so hoping this will bring up some new conversations. Also, while rounding through the unit on Monday, I usually ask about the weekend, what they did, etc… If they say they grilled with family, then I ask if they saw the board. This is a great lead-in to a conversation about salt, sodium, thirst, etc…

I also always try to include a small section on foods to avoid because I find that a lot of my patients discover foods that they are unknowingly consuming. This helped time and time again with my patients finally get their phos or potassium down OR in the very least begin a conversation that can lead us to discovering problem foods.