title: Consensus development on the essential competencies for Iranian public health nutritionists.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess key experts' opinion regarding essential competencies required for effective public health nutrition practice within the health-care system of Iran.
  
  
  METHODS
  Qualitative study using the modified Delphi technique through an email-delivered questionnaire.
  
  
  METHODS
  Iran.
  
  
  METHODS
  Fifty-five experts were contacted through email. The inclusion criterion for the study panel was being in a relevant senior-level position in nutrition science or public health nutrition in Iran.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In the first round, forty-two out of fifty-five experts responded to the questionnaire (response rate=76 %). A sixty-five-item questionnaire was designed with nine competency areas, including 'nutrition science', 'planning and implementing nutritional interventions', 'health and nutrition services', 'advocacy and communication', 'assessment and analysis', 'evaluation', 'cultural, social and political aspects', 'using technology' and 'leadership and management'. All experts who had participated in the first round completed a modified version of the questionnaire with seventy-seven items in the second round. The experts scored 'nutrition science' as the most essential competency area, while more applied areas such as 'management and leadership' were less emphasized. In both rounds, the mean difference between the opinions of the necessity of each area was 5.6 %.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The Iranian experts had general agreement on most of the core competency areas of public health nutritionists. The results indicated the need for capacity building and revisions to educational curricula for public health nutritionist programmes, with more emphasis on skill-based competency development.
authors.affiliation: 1Nutrition Department,Ministry of Health and Medical Education,Tehran,Islamic Republic of Iran.
authors.forename: Farzaneh
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Sadeghi-Ghotbabadi
authors.affiliation: 2Department of Community Nutrition,National Nutrition and Food Technology Research Institute; and Faculty of Nutrition Sciences and Food Technology,Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences,46 West Hafezi Street,Farahzadi Boulevard,Shahrak Qods,1981619573 Tehran,Islamic Republic of Iran.
authors.forename: Elham
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Shakibazadeh
authors.affiliation: 2Department of Community Nutrition,National Nutrition and Food Technology Research Institute; and Faculty of Nutrition Sciences and Food Technology,Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences,46 West Hafezi Street,Farahzadi Boulevard,Shahrak Qods,1981619573 Tehran,Islamic Republic of Iran.
authors.forename: Nasrin
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Omidvar
authors.affiliation: 3School of Medical Education,Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences,Tehran,Islamic Republic of Iran.
authors.forename: Fathieh
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Mortazavi
authors.affiliation: 4Aboriginal and Global Health Research,Department of Medicine,University of Alberta,Edmonton,Alberta,Canada.
authors.forename: Fariba
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Kolahdooz
mesh_terms: D057191:Capacity Building; D003142:Communication; D003697:Delphi Technique; D034742:Electronic Mail; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007492:Iran; D007857:Leadership; D008297:Male; D052756:Nutritional Sciences; D064686:Nutritionists / Q000592:standards*; D011361:Professional Competence / Q000592:standards*; D015980:Public Health Practice / Q000592:standards*; D036301:Qualitative Research
keywords: Iran’s health-care system