Leadership and Faculty
Rebecca Ann Nagle
Clinical Instructor
Rebecca Nagle is a pediatric nurse practitioner at Timberlane Pediatrics and a clinical instructor in the College of Nursing and Health Sciences. She has worked in pediatrics as both a registered nurse and a primary care nurse practitioner. She is certified by the International Board of Lactation Consultant Examiners and works with breastfeeding mothers in her pediatric practice.
Her passions lie in pediatrics and integrative health, and she is an Integrative Nursing Faculty Fellow at the University of Arizona. When not working, Ms. Nagle enjoys the outdoors and having fun with her family and friends. She is pursuing her D.N.P. at the University Of Vermont.
Cara Feldman Hunt
Program Manager, UVM Integrative Health
Cara has been involved in the field of integrative health care since 2008. As Administrative Director of UVM Integrative Health, Cara works with leadership in the College of Nursing and Health Sciences, the Larner College of Medicine and the University of Vermont Medical Center to develop a sustainable program with clinical, education and research activities. Cara’s background is in organizational development and she has worked in large corporate settings, small start-ups, non-profits and educational institutions.
Prior to joining the University of Vermont, Cara served as Executive Director of the Laura Mann Center for Integrative Health, a 501c3 that promoted the benefits of integrative health care by bridging the gap between community members and health practitioners from all disciplines. Cara is currently enrolled in the Functional Medicine Coaching Academy.
Culinary Medicine Programming
Student Programming
The culinary medicine elective at UVM started in 2019. There are two courses currently. One is for undergraduate students and the other is for health coaching students. Students are completing 5 modules of the curriculum. Some students use the Nutrition Lab Kitchen and others use their own home kitchens.
Residency Programming
None as of yet.
Fellowship Programming
None as of yet.
Community Programming
The community programming occurs at UVM occurs with survivor patients at the Cancer center and patients at the Pain Clinic. At the Cancer Center and Pain Clinic, the culinary team at UVM provides a curriculum to patients that involves didactic and experimental sessions in the kitchen. Participants are part of the course for 8 weeks.
Media Coverage
Successes
Students and community participants find the Culinary Medicine elective to be a valuable part of their medical education. Students appreciate having the opportunity to learn how to prepare recipes from various diets. The combination of hands-on cooking and didactic sessions allows students and patients to deepen their own fundamental understanding of food and nutrition while providing a creative opportunity for the development of practical skills.
Funding
Funding is provided through several grants, including one provided by Blue Cross Blue Shield.
Challenges
There are some challenges with the elective, especially with regards to faculty time and resources. They faced several changes in leadership this past year that have also impacted their availability to provide this course. There are other groups on campus that are also providing culinary medicine courses as well.
