Hosted jointly by the British Dietetic Association’s (BDA) Northern Ireland Board and Northern Ireland Branch, Connect - Celebrate - Collaborate brought together the nation’s dietetic workforce for an evening of networking, knowledge-sharing, and recognition. The event took place during Dietitians Week, an annual celebration of the valuable work of the profession.
Speakers from each of Northern Ireland’s five health trusts shared powerful examples of how dietetics is driving innovation and improving care within the health service.
There were also talks from Jenny Kirkwood, Chair of the AHP Federation on The Allied Health Professions Federation Northern Ireland, Pete Burbidge, AHP lead at the Department of Health on the CAHPO team and what they do and Registered Dietitian Fiona Audley, who is also Professional Practice Officer at the BDA on recognising the value of the dietetic support workforce through action and advocacy.
515 registered dietitians work across Northern Ireland, in a diverse number of sectors. These include within Health and Social Care NI, in public health, as freelancers, working within industry or in research roles.
Registered dietitians are the only qualified and regulated health professionals that assess, diagnose and treat dietary and nutritional problems at an individual and wider public health level.
Debbie McGugan, Chair of the BDA’s Northern Ireland Board and community rehab dietitian in the Northern Trust, said, “It was fantastic to get together tonight and hear about the innovative work happening across the country.
“As a community rehab dietitian, I get to see every day just how life-changing our work is and opportunities like these are really important to step back and remember just how important the work of dietitians and dietetic support workers is to the wider health service.”
Chair of the BDA’s Northern Ireland Branch, Hilary Friel, said, “The goal of this evening was to give our members the opportunity to celebrate the great work they do every day, and the opportunity to meet up with colleagues from across the country. I’m delighted that we had a packed event and that everyone enjoyed the evening as much as we hoped they would!”
CEO of the BDA, Liz Stockley, travelled from England to attend the event. She said, “Northern Ireland has such an active and vibrant membership and attending Connect - Celebrate – Collaborate was a brilliant way to round off our Dietitians Week celebrations.
“It’s really important for us to increase the visibility of our profession because our members make such an invaluable contribution to health and wellbeing across the UK.”
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