The Dancing Dietitian

Recy David, known as The Dancing Dietitian, has been with Job Haines since 2001, nearly 22 years, and one of Job Haines’s long-time employees. But why is she known as The Dancing Dietitian? She has been an amateur ballroom dancer for 18 years, having won several first-place trophies in national dancing competitions. But more importantly, she can be seen dancing around Job Haines while working closely with residents and other employees.

Recy’s background as a dietitian is extensive. She received her BS in Food and Nutrition from Centro Escolar University in Manila, Philippines and her MA in Education majoring in Nutrition and Management from NYU, graduating with Honors, having received a full scholarship from her employer. Additionally, she worked as an adjunct professor teaching Equipment Design and Layout. Her work background includes:

• St. Michael’s Hospital, Newark, NJ – Clinical Dietitian
• St. Barnabas, Livingston, NJ – Clinical Dietitian
• St. Mary’s, Orange, NJ – Clinical Dietitian
• Hospital Center, Orange, NJ – Multi-Department manager of 5 departments, in charge of 200 employees
• Bergen Regional Medical Center, Paramus, NJ – General Manager
• Job Haines – Chief Clinical Dietitian

Recy was also a former president of the NJ Chapter Philippine American Dietetic Association as well as a former president of NJ American Society of Hospital Foodservice Administrators.

She consulted in several nursing homes in clinical services and management and even owned her own business recruiting and placing nurses prior to taking a full-time position at Job Haines Home.

When she applied to Job Haines, she applied as a consultant. After reviewing her resume and background, they decided she was just too good to only be a consultant and offered her a full-time position, to which she gladly accepted. At Job Haines, Recy’s work is 90% clinical and 10% hands on in the kitchen. She performs tasks such as reviewing residents’ medical records, meeting with residents and their families to learn more about the resident and their dietary needs, and learning about residents’ likes and dislikes, all to create the perfect dietary plan.

Furthermore, Recy works closely with the cooks in the kitchen to create menus, prepare beautiful plating presentations, and ensure they meet the state’s strict health code requirements. She loves catering and clearly knows that we eat first with our eyes before we eat with our mouths.

Recy says “I love working at Job Haines Home! We are all like one big happy family and we work together as team to meet our resident’s needs”. She gets along well with management, staff and residents alike. She is always looking for ways to improve food and plating for the residents to give them the best culinary experience possible. She takes the time to get to know all her residents and encourages them to make good dietary choices. But most importantly, she loves to do her job while dancing along the way.