Week 10: Task 1 - Professional Interview

I worked with Simon Au Yeung and we were allocated to interview Associate professor Karen Walker. We conducted this interview over email since Professor Walker was overseas on study leave and it was easier for her to answer the questions in written form. Nonetheless, we were able to see her personality shine through her emails as she wrote with such a story-like tone. It was very humbling to read.

I discovered that a career in dietetics does not necessarily mean you are working 9-5 in a clinic. I’ve realised that there is so much variety to this career which I definitely did not think there was before I started watching all the other presentations. In particular, Professor Walker was not only teaching, but she was able to publish journals, mentor graduates and participate in research all at the same time. The fact that she was able to practice and study nutrition overseas as well was extremely inviting to both Simon and I as travelling the world was an aspiration we both had. 

It was inspiring to hear how she had gotten into dietetics as this was not the path she had originally taken to begin with, but it made us realise that so many opportunities arise throughout your life and that it’s never too late to undertake something that you are passionate about. It also highlighted that I probably would not undertake teaching in the future as her descriptions of her average day in Notting Hill was not too exciting. On the other hand, she inspired me to consider public health or research in my future career. I feel now that I’ve listened to all of the presentations, I realised that even if I do decide to pursue a career in clinical dietetics, I can always do multiple things at once.

I would’ve loved to have met the Professor although I understand that the circumstances were too difficult to do so, she was nonetheless inspiring. Next time I would like to ask her more about her publications. Especially since she did so much work in Type 2 diabetes which I think will definitely be something I will come across as a dietician in the future. 

Week 9: Task 1 - Social Justice

—  "Equity in health is not about eliminating all health differences so that everyone has the same level of health, but rather to reduce or eliminate those which result from factors which are considered to be both avoidable and unfair. Equity is therefore concerned with creating equal opportunities for health and with bringing health differentials down to the lowest levels possible."

—  Source: NSW Health, Four steps towards equity, 2003.

I think it is unrealistic to think that in the future we will be able to “elimin(ate) all health differences so that everyone has the same level of health” since there will always be discrepancies between us all due to the way we were brought up and our differing lifestyles. We are bound to inherit or develop illness due to the way we live our lives. Therefore I agree with this statement that equity is not about making our health status’ equal, rather reducing the factors that cause the divide between the sick and the healthy. Equity is not about equal health but equal opportunity for good health. This includes access to healthy foods, fresh water, shelter, education and healthcare.

The social, economic, geographic, political and physical determinants of health can influence ones equity. The social determinants are defined by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age. These are major determinants which can be a precursor to a good or poor health in the future. Economic determinants refer to the state of the economy you’re living in. For example, a country in recession will consequently affect the health of its residents. A geographic determinant that could hinder your ability to access fresh food or health care facilities is if you live in rural areas. 

Unhealthy politics can lead to inequities in health such as the civil war in Palastine where pregnant women were refused entry into the hospitals and were forced to give birth at checkpoints. Physical determinants can relate to having transport nearby in order to access food or having a well-lit, aesthetically pleasing park for kids to play in.  

All of these determinants play a major role in creating equity within the health of our society. It is important to address all of them since so many of them are linked and if one is lacking, it has a domino-effect on the rest. 

Week 8: Task 2 - Personal Professionalism Experience

When I was first hired at Rodeo Show Boutique, they were not aware of my age when they took me on board. On my first shift the manager was really nice to me and happily taught me all the procedures that I needed to know to open, close and run the store. I had been rostered on to work about 26 hours per week because they thought I understood the new procedures really quickly. 

About a couple of weeks later it was revealed that I was only 18 years old and straight out of high school, and from then on I felt like I was treated with less respect by the management team. They had drastically reduced my hours to 6 per week with no reasoning behind it. Over the next month they had reduced my hours to 2 per week. 

Another casual member had noticed that they had cut down on my shifts drastically and she told me that it was really unfair of them to have me travel to the city for only a short shift. She herself was struggling with the 30 hours a week she was getting and she did not understand why some of those hours couldn’t go to me. As a result she sent an email to the head office asking if her hours could be reduced so that I could get a few more hours per week. A few days after she had sent the email I got a phone call from the management team saying that my employment was to be terminated as they simply did need any more workers since the hectic Christmas period was over and business was quieting down. A week after this I saw a casual sales assistant job being advertised on their shop front.  

I think a more professional way of terminating my employment was to just tell me that I was not age appropriate for the brand. During the group interview they should have asked everyone their age so that they would not have to rehire older sales assistants. Age is merely a number and I think they should have taken in my level of maturity and perhaps not have fired me at all as during my training they had said I was a very competent worker. 

Week 8: Task 1 - Professionalism

Personal hygiene and uniform is a particular area that interests me in professionalism. At first I thought uniforms were just a form of identification, but after thinking about my own personal experiences in the health sector, they play an important part in one's professionalism. If I'm looking for a nurse in the hospital, I'm not going to approach someone who is dressed in tracksuits and ugg boots who is talking to the patient, I'm more likely to assume they are a visitor. I would approach the lady who is wearing her navy blue collared short and white tailored pants holding a clipboard. But it seems that there is more to uniforms than just identification purposes. 

 The 2010 report called “the impact of pediatric nurses’ uniforms on perceptions of nurse professionalism”, highlights how something as simple as first impressions on uniform can affect our perception on their level of professionalism. This report talks about a survey that was conducted on pediatric patients (children aged 7-17) and their visitors on the competency, approachability, attentiveness, professionalism and reliability of nurses dressed in different uniforms.   

A second study in 2006 run by Skorupski and Rea found that a white uniform highlighted that a nurse had the confidence, reliability  competence, professionalism and efficacy traits and nurses in a small-print uniform conveyed caring, attractiveness, cooperation, empathy and was approachable. Parents preferred a nurse in a small-print uniform to be the caregiver to their children. 

This is just proof that a healthcare worker will be judged on their professionalism and efficacy through how they present themselves. This cements the reason as to why hospitals and other health care facilities have dress codes in which the workers adhere to in order to maintain a level of professionalism across the workers. 

Week 6: Task 2 - Health and Wellbeing

I interviewed my friend Claire over the phone who was diagnosed with anorexia nervosa around 6 months ago. She has recovered really well since her lowest weight at 41kg for a girl of 173cm in height. 

Claire and I have been good friends since year 7 and it was halfway through year 12 when I noticed she was losing a lot of weight and towards the pointy end of our HSC was when she was diagnosed. I asked if she could describe what a day in her life was like just before she was diagnosed, she said:

"Well, the first thing I did when I woke up (as sad as it sounds) was I felt for my hipbones to see if they were there. After this I instantly thought about what I'm having for breakfast, and everyday for 4 months it was 1/3 of a cup of rolled oats and 2 egg whites which was a total of 150 calories. My calorie goal for everyday was to consume less than 600 calories a day. After I finished my breakfast I would go to school, but on my mind constantly would be what I would be having for lunch. I always skipped recess and drank excessive amounts of water which caused my sodium levels to fall to dangerously low levels."

If I were to pretend I was a practising dietitian helping Claire in her recovery, I would advise that Claire slowly increase her calorie intake to a healthy level in order to aid gradual weight gain. As a SMART goal I would ask Claire to eat 1000 calories per day during Week 1, 1400 calories per day during Week 2, 1800 calories per day during Week 3 and 2200 calories in week 4. 

This is a measurable and realistic goal as I don’t want to frighten her with a high calorific consumption too early since she was so used to consuming 600 per day. After a month I would consider her progress and adjust to a higher calorific intake if more weight was still needed to be gained. 

Week 6: Task 1 - Emotional Intelligence

I think one domain that I believe I need strengthening in is motivation. I have been finding myself slacking off in terms of keeping on top of lecture notes and in the case of science lectures, even my attendance (not to say that I don't go to any, I do skip one here and there though).  

I think a lot of my thoughts are directed at my social life and fitting in at my workplace at the moment. I have been thrusted into so many new environments and have been meeting so many new people in the last few months in Melbourne that I've completely lost track of the reason I moved here in the first place. I think another reason that I'm falling behind is that I'm not learning things that I'm particularly interested in. I've been longing for the lecture that I learn about all the fad diets and the use of macro and micro nutrients etc. The lectures that we are currently learning I understand are vital in my future career but I feel it isn't grabbing my attention very much. 

An effective way to increase my motivation levels is to reinspire myself through reading more about what I love – nutrition. I think I need a reminder to kickstart my passion for this course again and taking time outs from studying to just do some casual reading that is not required for the course will ignite my passion for this course again. 

I think a shift in my priorities is a little overdue, I need to remember that my friends will still be there after my presentations are over, but my presentations can’t be paused so that I can cruise in my social life. I think a good chat to my mum and dad will help me remember why I’m here as well. 

Week 5: Task 1 - History of Nutrition

Recently at work, many of the girls had been talking about this new sugar free lifestyle they have taken on. They had all read this book called "I Quit Sugar" by Sarah Wilson which inspired them to take on this sugar-free lifestyle, relying on proteins, fats and low sugar carbohydrates to make up their diet. 

This first struck me as somewhat an extreme twist on the Mediterranian diet or the Atkins diet. They were eating lots of nuts and lentils but had little fruit in their diet. They reported the results to me saying that they felt much less bloated and was experiencing more stable moods. This seemed quite extreme to me to be eliminating fruit from their diet since fruit had always been advertised as "healthy" and were the source of many vitamins and minerals. 

I took to science to figure out the physiological effects of a low sugar diet. After three days of rummaging through the endless articles available online, I was unable to find any science-based information on the effects of quitting sugar. I also started to think about what Sarah Wilson meant by the terms "quite sugar", since she did not advise to quit lactose, maltose or glucose rather quitting fructose and refined carbohydrates. It was difficult to interpret exactly what was and wasn't allowed in the diet since she did not give much away on her website, insisting that I buy the book in order to find out more.

In a study where a group of rats were fed high-fructose corn syrup and the other fed with sucrose-supplements, it was shown that the rats that had been fed fructose had a higher level of fat deposits and higher levels of triglycerides in the blood. This may indicate that fructose in comparison to sucrose may increase the likelihood of lipogenesis. Although, there are no further studies which back up this statement and it is not certain that the physiology of a rat is the same of that of a human.

In conclusion, I believe that this "I quit sugar" craze is not scientifically based and seems to show effects similar to those that are on a healthy diet already.