Life Lessons: How an Ordinary Dietitian from Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Became President of the First Canadian University in Egypt.

How does an ordinary dietitian have an extraordinary career? What is the most important asset that a dietitian has? Why is it important to take risks, be resilient, and challenge the status quo? In this article I answer these questions by sharing the highlights of my career and describing how I was socialized into the dietetics profession and ended up as the first female President of a Canadian university in Egypt.

Dietetic students' understanding of what becoming a dietitian means.

Purpose: We explored dietetic students' beliefs about what becoming a dietitian means.

Methods: A phenomenological approach to inquiry was used. Thirteen undergraduate students enrolled in a dietetics program were interviewed, and data were analyzed thematically.

New dietetic practitioners' perspectives on their education and training.

Purpose: To elucidate the complex phenomenon of dietitian professional socialization, we examined factors that influence people's decisions to pursue a career in dietetics and how education and training processes influence the professional socialization of dietitians.

Methods: Participants (n=12) had less than three years of work experience and included alumni from three Canadian universities representing different models of entry to practice. Three one-on-one interviews were conducted with each participant.

A team-based approach to qualitative inquiry: the collaborative retreat.

A team of researchers undertook a collaborative qualitative study to explore beginning dietitians' life experiences and the meaning ascribed to those experiences in the context of dietetic practice. Data were collected using Seidman's three-step in-depth phenomenological interviewing method with 12 beginning dietitians who were graduates of the three participating dietetic programs. We outline the collaborative research process and highlight a writing and data analysis technique described as the collaborative retreat, a face-to-face, two-day gathering that facilitated the researchers' collective decision-making and organization, discussion, and analysis of this complex qualitative data set.

Nutritional quality of children's school lunches: differences according to food source.

Objective: To assess the nutritional quality of lunchtime food consumption among elementary-school children on Prince Edward Island according to the source of food consumed (home v. school).

Design: Students completed a lunchtime food record during an in-class survey.

Dietetic students' identity and professional socialization in preparation for practice.

Purpose: Students' identity development and professional socialization during dietetic education were explored.

Methods: Thirteen undergraduate dietetic students from two universities completed three in-depth interviews based on Seidman's phenomenological approach. The students were at various stages of their education.

Implementing elementary school nutrition policy: principals' perspectives.

Purpose: We assessed principals' perceptions about the level of school nutrition policy (SNP) implementation in Prince Edward Island elementary schools, objectively evaluated how closely elementary schools are following SNP regulations for types and frequency of foods offered at school, and explored principals' beliefs about the key enablers and barriers to SNP implementation.

Methods: Phase I involved a cross-sectional survey of principals' assessment of perceived and actual adherence to SNP components. Phase II included in-depth interviews to explore principals' perceptions about factors influencing policy adherence.

Professional socialization in dietetics: a review of the literature.

The process of professionalization has been widely studied in nursing, but little is known about it in dietetics. We explored the process of professionalization using an integrative review of nursing literature. Three research questions were addressed: 1.

Implementing school nutrition policy: student and parent perspectives.

Purpose: We explored parent and student perceptions of barriers and facilitating factors influencing the implementation of school nutrition policies (SNPs). Specifically, we focused on the changes made to the school food environment and the acceptance of those changes.

Methods: This paper is a report on the first phase of the qualitative component of a larger five-year evaluation of nutrition policies in Prince Edward Island elementary schools (grades 1 to 6) and consolidated schools (grades 1 to 8).

A province-wide school nutrition policy and food consumption in elementary school children in Prince Edward Island.

Objective: Although the majority of Canadian provinces have indicated that they have adopted new school nutrition policies, there have been few if any systematic evaluations of these policies. In Prince Edward Island, a nutrition policy for elementary schools was adopted province-wide in 2006. In the present study, we assessed the nutritional benefits of the new policy by examining changes in student food consumption prior to and one year following implementation of the policy.

Predictors of physical activity, healthy eating and being smoke-free in teens: a theory of planned behaviour approach.

This paper elicited context specific underlying beliefs for physical activity, fruit and vegetable consumption and smoke-free behaviour from the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB), and then determined whether the TPB explained significant variation in intentions and behaviour over a 1 month period in a sample of grade 7-9 (age 12-16 years) adolescents. Eighteen individual interviews and one focus group were used to elicit student beliefs. Analyses of this data produced behavioural, normative and control beliefs which were put into a TPB questionnaire completed by 183 students at time 1 and time 2.

Developing school nutrition policies: enabling and barrier factors.

Purpose: The study was conducted to identify the enabling and barrier factors in the development of nutrition policies in Prince Edward Island elementary and consolidated schools.

Methods: A document review and in-depth interviews were conducted with key stakeholders (n=12).

Results: Principals were identified as important champions for change.

"Between Two Worlds": Healthcare Decision-maker Engagement with Regional Training Centres.

The engagement between Regional Training Centres (RTCs) and healthcare decision-makers within the context of Applied Health and Nursing Services Research (AHNSR) takes many forms, and is critical to the development of the next generation of researchers. Such engagement supports the concept of linkage and exchange by inculcating in students and healthcare decision-makers alike an understanding of and respect for each other's worlds. This process builds bridges of immense importance to contemporary healthcare.

Food intake and academic performance among adolescents.

Purpose: Prince Edward Island adolescents' food use was examined, as were possible associations between food use and grade, sex, and academic performance.

Methods: Participants (n=325) were purposively selected from four junior high schools. Dietary data were collected using an adaptation of the 2003 Youth Risk Behavior Survey.

Acknowledging and adapting to dietetic students' changing needs.

Purpose: Various societal influences have shaped the way dietetic students view and react to current educational situations. Students' perspectives were sought on conditions that caused stress in the educational environment, what they thought educators did not understand about them, and changes their faculty or preceptors had made to address their needs.

Methods: Third- and fourth-year university students, interns in their final rotations, and master's degree students completed a questionnaire (n=284).

The socialization of dietetic students: influence of the preceptor role.

This paper describes the influence of the preceptor on the evolving professional socialization of dietetic students. The study was conducted with Canadian dietetic students and interns and was designed to explore factors causing student stress. Students were asked to identify a series of common potentially stressful situations, to comment on what it is like to be a student today and to identify changes that preceptors had made that helped them reduce the stress in their lives.

What do adults in Prince Edward Island know about nutrition?

Purpose: To assess adults' knowledge of dietary recommendations, food sources of key nutrients, food choices, and diet-disease relationships.

Methods: A previously validated survey, designed to assess nutrition knowledge, was adapted for use in Prince Edward Island and mailed to a random sample of 3,500 adults (aged 18 to 74). Dillman's Total Design Method was followed and a response rate of 26.

Canadian dietitians' understanding of the client-centered approach to nutrition counseling.

Many dietetic researchers have recommended the use of a client-centered approach to counseling, but little has been written about what that means from the perspective of the practicing dietitian. The purpose of this study was to explore dietitians' understanding of the client-centered approach to nutrition counseling. In-depth qualitative interviews were conducted with 25 Canadian dietitians from a variety of practice areas.

Widespread micronutrient inadequacies among adults in prince edward island.

Purpose: The prevalence of micronutrient inadequacies was assessed among adult residents of Prince Edward Island (PEI) in the PEI Nutrition Survey.

Methods: A peer-reviewed protocol was used in this cross-sectional survey, in which 24-hour recalls were administered during in-home interviews. A stratified random sample of 1,995 adults aged 18 to 74 participated.

Dietitians' opinions and experiences of client-centred nutrition counselling.

Purpose: The concept of "client-centredness" was explored within a nutrition counselling relationship.

Methods: A two-round reactive Delphi survey was used. The first survey was sent to 65 Dietitians of Canada members who indicated in the member database that they had advanced counselling skills.

Fruit and vegetable consumption: benefits and barriers.

Few people on Prince Edward Island meet the goal of consuming five or more servings of vegetables and fruit a day. The main objective of this qualitative study was to explore the perceptions of the nutritional benefits and barriers to vegetable and fruit intake among adult women in Prince Edward Island. Participants were 40 women aged 20-49, with or without children at home, who were or were not currently meeting the objective of eating five or more fruit and vegetable servings a day.

Measured weights in PEI adults reveal higher than expected obesity rates.

Background: The increasing prevalence of obesity and overweight in Canada is a significant health concern. Unfortunately, we know very little about the actual weight status and associated health risks in our population since most surveys use only self-reported body weights and heights and typically do not include a measure of body fat distribution. This paper summarizes the findings of the Prince Edward Island Nutrition Survey.

Client-centred nutrition counselling: do we know what this means?

In Canada, professional standards mandate that dietitians should use a client-centred approach to provide nutrition counselling services. Although most dietitians would probably agree that this is an important standard, how this mandate is translated into our daily practice is not always clear. The purpose of this paper is to explore the origins of the "client-centred approach" used in dietetic counselling.