Malnutrition Screening Tool (MST) Obtain consent to complete this screening by asking ‘Can I ask you some questions about your nutritional health?’ Adapted from: ‘Malnutrition – Is your patient at risk?’ Screening Tool and Action Flowchart, Merrilyn Banks APD. Ferguson M, et al. Nutrition 1999, 15; 458-464 Scoring Key points to A score of 0-1 means the client is at remember low risk of malnutrition. Review every months. Malnutrition is preventable and reversible. A score of 2 means the client may be at risk of malnutrition. Use the ‘Nutrition Consistent gradual weight loss can add up Risk Identification Questions’ below to to significant weight loss and malnutrition identify any issues that might be over time. contributing. Find and use strategies to Overweight/obese clients who have support clients to deal with any issues unexplained weight loss or decreased that you identify. Review in 2-3 months. appetite can be at risk of malnutrition too. A score of 3-5 means the client is at After you assess that a client is at risk, it is high risk of malnutrition. Use the important to identify what may be ‘Nutrition Risk Identification Questions’ contributing to this risk, and to take action below to identify any issues that might quickly. be contributing. Find strategies to support clients to deal with any issues This screening tool identifies those at risk that you identify. Refer to a doctor or of malnutrition, but is not intended to be dietitian promptly if weight and/or food used to diagnose malnutrition. This can be intake does not improve quickly, done by an Accredited Practising Dietitian. following efforts to address identified issues.
Malnutrition Screening Tool (MST) Obtain consent to complete this screening by asking ‘Can I ask you some questions about your nutritional health?’ Adapted from: ‘Malnutrition – Is your patient at risk?’ Screening Tool and Action Flowchart, Merrilyn Banks APD. Ferguson M, et al. Nutrition 1999, 15; 458-464 Scoring A score of 0-1 means the client is at low risk of malnutrition. Review every months. A score of 2 means the client may be at risk of malnutrition. Use the ‘Nutrition Risk Identification Questions’ below to identify any issues that might be contributing. Find and use strategies to support clients to deal with any issues that you identify. Review in 2-3 months. A score of 3-5 means the client is at high risk of malnutrition. Use the ‘Nutrition Risk Identification Questions’ below to identify any issues that might be contributing. Find strategies to support clients to deal with any issues that you identify. Refer to a doctor or dietitian promptly if weight and/or food intake does not improve quickly, following efforts to address identified issues. Key points to remember Malnutrition is preventable and reversible. Consistent gradual weight loss can add up to significant weight loss and malnutrition over time. Overweight/obese clients who have unexplained weight loss or decreased appetite can be at risk of malnutrition too. After you assess that a client is at risk, it is important to identify what may be contributing to this risk, and to take action quickly. This screening tool identifies those at risk of malnutrition, but is not intended to be used to diagnose malnutrition. This can be done by an Accredited Practising Dietitian.