Workflow: Drafting a CKD Dietary Counselling Letter

This workflow takes you from a clinical assessment of a patient's dietary needs to a finished, reviewed dietary guidance letter. It is designed for situations where the patient is waiting for a dietitian referral, or needs a supporting letter in addition to the dietitian's more detailed individual guidance.

1. Identify the specific dietary restrictions before opening the tool

   Decide which dietary areas this letter will address. Nephrology dietary guidance covers several distinct areas — potassium, phosphate, fluid, salt, protein — and each requires a different explanation. A letter that tries to cover everything at once is overwhelming. Decide which restrictions are the priority for this patient at this stage, and focus the letter on those.

2. Note the patient's context and any complicating factors

   Before you open the tool, write down any factors that affect how the dietary advice should be framed: Is the patient also diabetic? Are they on dialysis? Do they have a cultural or religious dietary pattern that affects which foods are the main concern? Do they cook for themselves? These details make the letter more relevant and help you catch any generic advice that does not fit.

3. Open the tool and set the task

   Open claude.ai or chat.openai.com and start a fresh conversation. Type: "You are helping a nephrologist draft a dietary guidance letter for a CKD patient. I will describe the patient's clinical situation and dietary restrictions. Draft a practical, plain-language letter explaining why each restriction matters and what it means day to day. Do not give specific quantity limits. Do not list specific foods as universally safe. Do not include drug names or doses."

4. Provide the clinical context and restrictions

   Paste your brief, anonymised description of the patient: age range, CKD stage, specific restrictions that apply, and any complicating context. The tool will produce a draft.

5. Read the draft for clinical accuracy

   Read the draft as a clinician. Check: Is the explanation of why potassium matters correct? Is the advice about cooking methods for vegetables accurate? Does the phosphate section correctly describe the main food categories? Look particularly at any specific food claims — the tool can be inaccurate about the specific potassium or phosphate content of individual foods. If you see a specific claim you are not certain about, either verify it or ask the tool to remove it and describe the category instead.

6. Check for conflicts with other medical advice

   Read the letter from the perspective of a patient who is also receiving dietary advice from their diabetologist, GP, or another source. Is there any apparent conflict? For example: a general public health message about eating plenty of fruit and vegetables may conflict with potassium restriction advice. The letter should acknowledge this and explain that kidney disease creates specific dietary needs that differ from general health advice. Add a sentence to this effect if the tool has not included one.

7. Add the dietitian referral information

   The letter should note that a dietitian will provide more specific, individualised guidance. If the referral has been made, add the expected contact details or waiting time. If not, note that one is being arranged. This frames the letter as a bridge to specialist dietetic input, not a substitute for it.

8. Copy to your clinical system and add identifying details

   Copy the reviewed draft into your letter template. Add the patient's name and address, your contact details, the date, and any specific clinical thresholds from their results (such as a recent potassium level that prompted this letter). None of these details went into the AI tool. They come from you now.

What this means for you

A patient who understands why they are being asked to change their diet is more likely to comply. "Avoid bananas" without an explanation is less effective than "potassium is cleared by healthy kidneys — because yours are working less efficiently, potassium can build up to levels that affect your heart rhythm." The tool helps you produce the explanation at scale. Your clinical knowledge ensures it is accurate.

When not to use this workflow

This workflow produces a general dietary guidance letter — a framework for the patient while waiting for specialist dietetic input. It does not replace the individual dietary assessment that a renal dietitian performs. For patients with complex dietary situations — malnutrition, multiple dietary restrictions, eating disorders, or dialysis — ensure that the dietitian referral is prioritised and that this letter is explicitly framed as interim guidance.

Remember: AI is a helpful assistant, not a clinician. You make the call.