Christie Bennett
Dr. Christie Bennett is an Accredited Practising Dietitian and Assistant Lecturer at the Department of Nutrition, Dietetics and Food at Monash University.
Location Australia
Activity
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@RexRegalado This is really interesting Rex. Can you provide more insight as to what changing your environment looks like practically?
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So glad to hear that Brendan. Thank you for sharing your insights!
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Hi Brendan, with these it might be helpful to keep in mind the screening tools outlined in week 1.
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You have highlighted an important point. Self-monitoring gives the patient long terms skills to manage their lifestyle behaviours.
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Thanks for your insight. Are there any common challenges/barriers that you come across in your work regarding patients that find weight loss difficult?
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Christie Bennett replied to Brendan Mc Conville
Hi Brendan, again great summary. Do you have any experience using wearables?
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Christie Bennett replied to Rex Regalado
Welcome Rex! Great to have you in the course. I look forward to hearing more about your experience.
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Great summary Brendan.
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It seems like a common experience that patients ask about VLCDs. Thanks for sharing your insights.
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@StephanieBlackwell Thanks for sharing Steph! It is great to hear your insight.
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Hi Brendan,
You are right bariatric surgery can improve fertility outcomes. But, individual advice may be necessary to ensure they have adequate nutrition. -
Hi Brendan,
You have mentioned some interesting points. I particularly like your insight that the practitioner and the patient perception of treatment modalities might be different. It highlights the importance of clear communication. -
Christie Bennett replied to Andrew Harley
Andrew this sounds like a really great approach you have with your team. Especially in adolescents and young adults a discussion about weight may do potential harm. Focusing on confidence and tangible training goals is not only going to make them a better athlete but is going to reduce the risk of harm.
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This is great Stephanie, thanks for sharing! I agree, by explaining how many tsp or kJ are in sugar-sweetened beverages can be a really great strategy to empower the patient to make healthier choices.
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Brendan I really like how you have involved the patient in the discussions about why you are suggesting these changes. This approach can provide the patient confidence to manage their decisions in the future.
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Christie Bennett replied to Andrew Harley
This is a really important point to remember. Thank you for highlighting it early Andrew! BMI is one component of a multitude of measures we might measure for the reason you have stated.
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Christie Bennett replied to Andrew Harley
Hi Andrew, welcome! It is great to have a diverse range of professions represented. Looking forward to hearing from some of your experiences in the coming week.
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Great reflections Brendan. I think you have raised a really good point about peer pressure in social situations. Is there anything you would recommend for Ben when it comes to 'his round'?
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Hi Steph,
Can you provide any insight or experience you have had using
'quick wins'? -
Hi Brendan,
With the PDF and links provided hopefully should get you started! -
That sounds like a patient-centred approach Brendan.
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Welcome Brendan!
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Welcome Steph! It will be great to hear some of your insights and reflections with respect to your clinical practice.
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Christie Bennett made a comment
Hi everyone,
I am one of your lead educators for this course. Please make sure you comment to introduce yourself.I am a dietitian, post-doc researcher and assistant lecturer at Monash University. I primarily work in the women's health space.
I am so excited to get to know you all over the next two weeks!
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Thank you for bringing up culture. Very interesting to hear your experience. Culturally sensitive care is so important.
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Christie Bennett replied to Samantha K
Really like your stepwise approach and mention of exploring barriers! This can be important to know how to effectively motivate a patient.
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Christie Bennett replied to Samantha K
Thanks for sharing this article @SamanthaK. It is an interesting read. I believe it does raise some important points that require future research. Some important points for considerations are:
- The article does not include references so it is hard to trace back to the studies they refer to
- They mention two main studies, one with mice. There are obvious... -
So glad you have found this useful and informative @DianaFronaeus
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Christie Bennett replied to Nichola Moran
So glad you have enjoyed the course. It has been great hearing some of your experience and strategies along the way.
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Christie Bennett replied to Nichola Moran
Nichola, yes you are absolutely correct. Some of those factors a person can't change and others like emotions/psychology can be important adjunct therapies to behavioural strategies such as those mentioned by Helen in the video.
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Christie Bennett made a comment
You both raise important considerations about 'upsizing'. Another consideration in this discussion is the environmental implications of purchasing and consuming above our energy requirements.
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Christie Bennett replied to Nichola Moran
I think these programmes are sometimes very restrictive and don't teach the participant skills to overcome barriers (particularly targeted 12-week programmes). @DianaFronaeus you also raise an important consideration about the psychological implications both the programmes and obesity has.
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Christie Bennett replied to Diana Fronaeus
Hi Diana, I think the take-home message here is that it is the energy deficit that is important. It is not so important how you get there. So having a few methods available can help so you can tailor your intervention to the patient's lifestyle and medical needs.
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Thanks for sharing this Diana. Some food for thought. I think they both agree that empathy is important. I also wonder if culture plays a role in how patients interact with health professional empathic encounters?
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Could you give us some examples here Samantha of what you might suggest?
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I think you might be able to revisit the patient's goals. Having a clear goal with a timeframe can help manage expectations. Also, while the numbers on the scale may not have changed you may like to focus the conversation on the positive behaviour change they have made and acknowledge the effort they have put in.
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Christie Bennett replied to Prabha Raghavan
Yes, there is a fine balance between not having enough detail and having too much!
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Christie Bennett replied to Nichola Moran
I also like the Japanese guidelines. The spinning top is such a nice metaphor, isn't it?
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There have been a few studies looking at practitioner empathy (language, rapport etc), which shows better outcomes without extending consultation time see here for references:
Goodchild CE, Skinner TC, Parkin T. The value of empathy in dietetic consultations. A pilot study to investigate its effect on satisfaction, autonomy and agreement. J Human Nutr Diet...
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Christie Bennett replied to Lana Kairey
Lana I really like your approach that you would focus on the physiological aspects of adipose tissue rather and BMI. That more specific focus might help some patients engage that wouldn't have engaged in a discussion about BMI. Thanks for sharing this!
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Christie Bennett replied to Diana Fronaeus
This is an interesting topic for discussion. I will wait to see what other learners think!
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Christie Bennett replied to Nichola Moran
This is a really interesting point. What do you think it is about commercial programmes that doesn't promote sustainable weight loss? Because you are right, they are sometimes more accessible than some health care professionals.
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Great Nichola. Do you have any other self-regulation techniques you use with your patients? This is one of the most powerful tools we can provide to our patients that will help sustain lifestyle change longterm.
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Unfortunately, a referral to a dietitian for pregnancy-specific advice is not normal within the Australian health care system. However, it seems women are seeking this out more now in the private system.
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Christie Bennett replied to Samantha K
Hi Samantha,
Welcome! Hopefully, this will give you a headstart in some of your studies. -
Christie Bennett replied to Juliet H
Hi Juliet, great to have a fellow researcher on board! What is your PhD topic?
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Christie Bennett replied to Nichola Moran
You are so right Nichola she is listening but not hearing.
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Finding a weight loss group is a great idea that might be able to provide support and motivation in between sessions. I guess we would just need to check it was well moderated and not sharing unhelpful/unevidenced based advice.
Inviting partners in is often an important step, but requires trust and consent from your patient. Also, very important if they...
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Christie Bennett replied to Prabha Raghavan
Thank you both for sharing your views and evidence on this topic. It certainly is a topic that can divide people. I will wait to see if anyone else has anything to say on this and I will share what I do in practice at the end of the week.
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Christie Bennett replied to Diana Fronaeus
I certainly see your point here Diana. In your approach, when would you raise it? You have said you might wait for a weight-related issue. I wonder if we look at it from a prevention perspective, is there any value in intervening before those issues might arise?
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Christie Bennett replied to Diana Fronaeus
You are absolutely right there is weight stigma in the first half of the video and it hard to watch isn't it?
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Christie Bennett replied to Diana Fronaeus
Yes, here in Australia we also have both publically and privately funded healthcare. I think the discussion of COVID-19 is important. While we don't have a crystal ball, what impacts do we believe it may have long term?
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Christie Bennett replied to Nichola Moran
This is a great idea, thank you for sharing this!
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It can be really difficult if there are limited resources. Hopefully Diana this course will give you the skills to help some of those patients that can't be referred on.
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Christie Bennett replied to Diana Fronaeus
Diana it sounds like your approach to talk about weight is patient-centred, taking into account the needs and beliefs of the patient. Referring to a dietitian is always a great idea, particularly if they have struggled for years. As you say though, it might take a few sessions before that conversation comes up with the patient, once you have built trust and...
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Hi Diana, yes that would be difficult. Throughout the course, it would be great for you to share your experience of working in a different system.
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Christie Bennett replied to Diana Fronaeus
Hi Diana, great to have you on board. Your role sounds very diverse. I am sure you will have a lots of experience to share with the group.
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Glad you found these helpful.
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Christie Bennett replied to Nichola Moran
It certainly is a difficult step. What would you do in this situation? Do you have any suggestions for other learners?
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Christie Bennett replied to Nichola Moran
Hi Nichola, 'what brings you here today' is a great question to try and work out what is important to the patient. Even if they do come to see us just because they were 'sent' that then opens up another conversation about their barriers. Thank you for sharing your insights with this topic.
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Great suggestion Prabha.
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Christie Bennett replied to Prabha Raghavan
Hi Prabha, we don't have something like that in the course at the moment. But I think it is a great suggestion.
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Yes, the SMART approach is great! With patients, this gives them a tangible outcome to focus on and also gives them an idea of the timeframe, which can help manage expectations from the beginning. Thanks for sharing this.
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You raise such an important point about our relationships with our patients. We need to build a space of respect and trust so that our patients feel comfortable sharing their challenges. After all, weight loss does take time and there will be a few bumps in the road along the way.
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Christie Bennett replied to Prabha Raghavan
Hi Prabha, this is a great question. Here in Australia patients often need to fulfil the following criteria to qualify for bariatric surgery:
1. Have a BMI >40; or
2. BMI>35 with two or more significant obesity-related co-morbidities (such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes etc) -
Christie Bennett replied to Nichola Moran
Hi Nichola, this is a really good start to opening up the conversation with a patient. How would you phrase this when talking to a patient? Do you have any good conversation probes to use?
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Christie Bennett replied to Kirsten A
I agree, picking up on those subtle cues with a patient can make a huge difference to the patient experience and therefore outcomes.
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Hi Kirsten, great point about giving the patient confidence and motivation to keep going.
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Christie Bennett replied to Prabha Raghavan
You raise some key barriers faced by shift workers. You have mentioned stretching, particularly for office workers. Can you think of other physical activity strategies for shift workers?
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Hi Sinéad,
Great to have you on board. Looking forward to hearing some of your experiences.
Kind regards,
Christie -
Hi Prabha, sounds like you picked up the main points of that video. The 'quick wins' are mentioned at about 2:41, talking about eating overnight. Denise is talking about small changes during his shift work that have shown to have big metabolic influences. Hope that helps!
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It is hard to watch, isn't it! The plan you have proposed is much more patient-centred and achievable.
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Discussing breakfast would be an important point to raise with Ben. It seems like this is a busy part of the day. So discussing this barrier would be important for long term sustainable behaviour change. Thanks for sharing.
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Hi Prabha, I really like what you said about listening patiently and observing their stage of change. Later in the week, you might find different techniques which may be able to engage and motivate your patients.
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Christie Bennett replied to Prabha Raghavan
Hi Prabha, sounds like by building some rapport and waiting for the patient to engage your skills you are already practising a patient-centred approach. Thanks for sharing.
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Christie Bennett made a comment
Welcome to the course everyone! Great to have some of you introducing yourselves already. I look forward to the discussions over the next two weeks.
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Christie Bennett replied to Prabha Raghavan
Hi Prabha,
It is great to have you join us. Great to have a varied experiences here with us in the course. Hope you find the next two weeks useful! -
Christie Bennett replied to Lucy Eva
Hi Lucy,
Welcome to the course! It sounds like you will have some great experience to share with the group. -
So sorry to hear that Louise! I would say though like all health professionals every dietitian is different. I would encourage you to keep searching for one that clicks with you and your values. If you are Aus there is a handy tool on the DAA website for finding an accredited dietitian http://daa.asn.au/for-the-public/find-an-apd/ I wish you all the best in...
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Also I think this video was just making us as learners, more aware of the large portion sizes around us. The 'portion size' is a guide and a standardization. The Australian Guide to Healthy Eating - eat for health has a 'foundation diet' and then you can add on portion sizes for activity levels. So for example an adult female between 19-50 is recommended to...
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That is so wonderful your 11 month old to be having those wonderful vegetables. Sounds like you are introducing lots of wonderful foods to him. And at the end of the day, we need to do whatever we can to get our kids to eat veggies :)
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Christie Bennett replied to Leopoldo Henriquez
Hi Leopoldo here is the link for the evidence behind the Australian Dietary Guidelines. https://www.nhmrc.gov.au/_files_nhmrc/publications/attachments/n55_australian_dietary_guidelines_130530.pdf
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Christie Bennett replied to Kim Connolly
Hi Kim, if you complete a step just press the 'mark as complete' button then it will show in blue in your Food as Medicine course overview. Hope that helps!
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Christie Bennett replied to Jasna Krsmanovic
Hi all,
It's so great to see how we are all trying to learn off of one another.However, to do this in the most effective way can we please keep evidence shared to scientific studies. If we are posting blogs and websites we run the risk of circulating misinformation to each other... and no one wants that!
