Information for Patients and Caregivers

Welcome to the A.S.P.E.N. Patient Information Center. This center is designed to provide patients and caregivers with information about nutrition support, including parenteral and enteral nutrition.

Please note that A.S.P.E.N. is unable to provide specific referrals to healthcare providers or answer specific questions about a particular patient situation.

Patient Education Materials

What is Nutrition Support Therapy?
What is a Nutrition Support Professional?

What is Enteral Nutrition?
What is Enteral Nutrition? (En Espanol)

What is Parenteral Nutrition?
What is Parenteral Nutrition? (En Espanol)

Home Enteral Nutrition Complication Chart
Home Parenteral Nutrition Complication Chart

Resources

The A.S.P.E.N. Nutrition Support Patient Education Manual

This publication is a compilation of more than 200 fact sheets from many prestigious organizations and institutions. The book and CD-ROM is an outstanding tool to help patients, their families and caregivers better understand clinicians' verbal explanations concerning nutrition therapy options and procedures. Topics include: general nutrition, enteral nutrition and access devices, feeding methods, home enteral and parenteral nutrition, medications, care and maintenance of feeding tubes, coping, parenteral nutrition, parenteral access devices and pumps, Medicare and Medicaid, surgery including gastrointestinal surgery and liver transplant, medical conditions, diets to promote weight gain and maximize protein intake, nutrition considerations for patients with cancer, nutrition in the elderly, nutrition assessment in pediatrics, enteral and parenteral nutrition in pediatrics and home parenteral nutrition in pediatric patients. Also featured is an entire section of Spanish language materials on general nutrition, enteral nutrition, home enteral and parenteral nutrition, and pediatric enteral and parenteral nutrition.

Learn more and view the table of contents

Oley Foundation

The Oley Foundation is a national, independent, non-profit organization that provides education, outreach, emotional support, and information on home parenteral and enteral nutrition as well as clinical outcome information for home parenteral and enteral nutrition consumers, families, professionals and others. Oley can be contacted at (800)776-OLEY or www.oley.org.
About The Oley Foundation
About The Oley Foundation (En Español)

Oley Information Form (HIPPA)

Association of Gastrointestinal Motility

The Association of Gastrointestinal Motility of Gastrointestinal Motility Disorders, Inc. (AGMD) is a nonprofit international organization that serves as an educational resource concerning digestive motility diseases and disorders. It also provides support for patients as well as family members and functions as an information base for members of the medical, scientific, and nutritional communities.

Feeding Tube Awareness Foundation

Feeding Tube Awareness Foundation shares practical information on tube feeding and raises positive awareness. Each year they sponsor Feeding Tube Awareness Week.