In 2023, the Food and Mood Academy launched a new ongoing professional development course called ‘Lifestyle Medicine for Mental Health Services (Life and Mind)’, designed in collaboration with James Cook University.
Delivered by experts from the field of lifestyle medicine across the globe, the course aims to translate the latest health research into practical strategies for clinicians to implement with their patients.
Led by Dr Tetyana Rocks, the course is the first of its kind globally and was accredited and endorsed by the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners. It seeks to bridge the gap between research and treatment in lifestyle therapy for mental health.
Lifestyle Medicine for Mental Health Services (Life and Mind) is a three-week course designed for health professionals working in services that provide mental health care. Participants learn how to prevent and manage mental illness with practical lifestyle interventions.
This is the third course offered by the Academy, which has seen well over 85,000 enrolments to date. Other courses include Food and Mood – Improving Mental Health through Diet and Nutrition, a free online course open to anyone around the world; and Introduction to Nutritional Psychiatry (Nutri-Psyche), designed for health practitioners working in mental health and endorsed by the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists.
Post-course surveys indicate that over 94 per cent of participants gained new knowledge through the educational offerings.
The courses have also received high praise among the cohort, with participant feedback including: “Thank you. I have found the course to be very informative and worthwhile and I will recommend it to my peers”, and: “A big thank you to all who had contributed to this course!”
The Academy enables the theme’s expert and evidence-based nutritional information to be disseminated to a range of people, which is increasingly important in an age when so much unsubstantiated information is being shared online.
Dr Rocks brings together her background in dietetics, science and education to create educational offerings that are rooted in research and accessible to a range of people. She translates sometimes challenging and intricate science into everyday, applicable messages for people.
The Academy’s free online course receives the most enrolments, with everyone from high-schoolers to pensioners taking part. Its success derives not only from the sharing of accessible information about the relationship between nutrition and brain health, but also through the power of social learning, with participants sharing ideas, recipes and experiences on the forums.
2024 will be a big year for the Academy.
Along with its work translating research into practice via education and training in Australia and internationally, it is planning an extensive fundraising campaign to seek support for the work that delivers essential professional training and accessible education to the community.
If you would like to support the Food and Mood Academy, please contact Dr Tetyana Rocks directly via tetyana.rocks@deakin.edu.au.
