Introducing NHD’s new Editor, Emma Coates… Emma will be taking up the post of NHD Magazine’s Editor from the March issue and here she tells us a bit about her dietetic background and what she hopes for the future of NHD. It’s great to have you on board Emma. Can you give us a brief outline of your dietetic background? I studied for my BSc (Hons) in Dietetics at Leeds Metropolitan University, graduating in 2006 and was fortunate to find my first job that year, at the Countess of Chester Hospital. For around two and a half years I worked there as a Band 5 Dietitian, completing an excellent rotation through many specialisms, including surgical, cardiology, respiratory, renal, diabetes and my personal dietetic interest, paediatrics. In 2008, a Band 6 paediatric position opened up at Wrexham Maelor Hospital, part of the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB) trust in North Wales, in my hometown. I jumped at the chance and applied. The following six years provided a large and varied paediatric caseload to manage in both the hospital and community setting. Whilst at BCUHB, I embraced many opportunities to develop and expand my skills as a dietitian, including becoming part of the student training team, a BDA trade union representative, writing for NHD Magazine and guest lecturing for the University of Chester. After eight and half years of working as an NHS dietitian, I moved into industry as metabolic dietitian/ brand manager for Dr Schar - Mevalia Low Protein. This is an exciting and challenging role where I manage the low protein brand for the company in the UK. My first year there been extraordinary, developing so many new skills and expanding my knowledge greatly. I have no doubt that this next year with the company will bring even more opportunities to grow as a dietitian. What are the hot topics in dietetics at present? Depending on your specialism, anything can be a hot topic! However, the nutritional challenges at either end of the life span are always talking points. Getting the best nutritional start in life is vital, as seen by the evidence from the www.thousanddays.org campaign. In contrast, the management of elderly care nutrition is a key issue to discuss, as the ageing population is ever increasing. Keeping our nation healthy is always a source of great debate, whether 10
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it’s related to malnutrition (under nutrition) or the obesity/metabolic syndrome crisis. Amongst these discussions, there’s always the nitty gritty of how dietetics can offer efficient, effective, safe and value-for-money services. In the future, I see further developments in the use of ketogenic diets and possibly the role of nutrigenomics. How do you see the NHD community supporting healthcare professionals in the field of nutrition and dietetics? Over the years, NHD has been a great provider of current and relevant articles for the nutrition and dietetics community. Keeping abreast of hot topics and moving with the current trends, NHD is a good tool for topping up on the most recent information, research and guidelines in all things nutrition and dietetics. It provides an easy way for dietitians and nutritionists to complete some CPD, learn something new, or just reinforce their current knowledge. Now, with excellent regular columns from contributors such as PENG and the NSPKU (IMD watch), as well as the great quality and variety of individual contributors we have, CPD has never been so easy or enjoyable! What’s your vision for NHD as you take over the role of Editor? I am keen for all of the magazine’s current accolades to continue, but also to welcome new contributors, giving more dietitians, nutritionists and other healthcare professionals an opportunity to develop their skills as writers and share their information, experiences and best practice. If you have an interest in writing for NHD, please email info@networkhealthgroup.co.uk. We would love to hear from you. Expanding our readership is important for me. Opening up NHD to students, dietetic assistants/technicians and nutritionists will hopefully encourage a new group of readers to enjoy all that NHD has to offer. Interaction with our readers is important; creating discussion and gaining feedback is key to the magazine’s ongoing success.