InTouch Newsletter
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Committee, Council & SIG Updates

The Nutrition Society

Dr Caroline Childs, BAPEN Council Member
Associate Professor, University of Southampton
The Nutrition Society Clinical/Medical Advisory Council Member

Email: office@nutritionsociety.org
Website: www.nutritionsociety.org
X: @Nutritionsoc
Instagram: the_nutrition_society
LinkedIn: /nutrition-society

The inaugural Nutrition Society Congress took place in Belfast, 2-5 July, at the beautiful and historic Assembly Buildings. The Congress brought together more science and networking opportunities than ever before. Alongside exciting plenaries and symposia exploring new data-focused approaches and challenges, delegates were able to engage with even more research, with symposia delivered by our partners, universities, and the private sector. As always at Nutrition Society events, there was plenty of social time with a very special Congress dinner at Titanic Belfast and dancing until the early hours! It was a pleasure to be able to welcome BAPEN members who joined us at such a wonderful event.

The Medical Working Group remains committed to supporting medical and healthcare professionals in engaging in evidence-based nutrition research and training, particularly those in the early stages of their careers. As part of our ongoing relations, we are excited to be joining you at the BAPEN Conference to share our Nutrition Society symposium on 'Nutrition and the brain' in Gateshead later this year.

Some other upcoming events you might like to note in your diary:

  • Nutrition Futures 2024: 12-13 September 2024, London – our annual Conference for nutrition science students and graduates.
  • #NutCan24: nutrition and cancer survivorship, 23-24 September 2024, Newcastle University
  • Winter Conference 2025: Dietary guidelines and advice – current and future, 21-22 January, The Royal Society, London.

You can follow the Nutrition Society Publications LinkedIn page where you can keep up to date on article collections on topics such as Nutrition and immune function, Nutrition and Mental Health and Ultra-Processed Foods. Papers from Nutrition Society events are published in the Proceedings of the Nutrition Society, so watch that space for the research emerging from the recent Congress. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society and the Journal of Nutritional Science are welcoming Expressions of Interest to join their Editorial Boards, so please do contact us at the Nutrition Society if that may be of interest.

For those looking for CPD opportunities, The Nutrition Society Academy continues to be an excellent resource with over 70 scientific and skills-based webinars available from £4.99 per month. With new webinars being added weekly, the Academy aims to upskill Nutrition and Healthcare Professionals by providing regular, evidence-based webinars, workshops and courses to develop nutrition science knowledge and enhance professional skills: https://nutritionsociety.academy.

All my very best,

Caroline

 

 

MAG and BANS

Dr Emily Walters RD PhD, BAPEN Malnutrition Officer

Email: malnutrition@bapen.org.uk

There have been quite a few changes relating to the Malnutrition Action Group (MAG) and the British Artificial Nutrition Survey (BANS), so here is a quick update.

  • The Intestinal Failure (IF) Registry has been developed through funding from NHS England. This Registry provides a four-nation database of adults and children requiring parenteral nutrition, with the BANS database for Home Parenteral Nutrition (HPN) subsequently retired. Sarah-Jane Hughes leads the IF Registry.
  • The BANS database has since focused on collecting home enteral tube feeding (HETF) data. However, declining data submission was a significant challenge. Following discussion with BAPEN members, Council and Executive, a decision was made to close BANS. It was recognised that a new approach to HETF data collection was needed.
  • The third change relates to the Malnutrition Action group (MAG). After many years Chairing MAG, Dr Rebecca Stratton sadly decided to step down.

This left BAPEN Executive and Council with some decisions to make.

It was identified that MAG and BANS (HETF) shared a common interest in capturing and describing data around the treatment of malnutrition risk. MAG’s data collection during UK Malnutrition Awareness week had recently begun to include information about treatment plans, including enteral tube feeding. A merger of BANS (HETF) and MAG was proposed. This was agreed by BAPEN Council and BAPEN Executive and has been ratified by the Trustees.

So, this brings a sad farewell to BANS and we would like to thank all of you who have contributed to the database over the years. MAG will continue but with revised terms of reference and expanded aims and objectives to reflect the merger with BANS (HETF).

Our invigorated MAG committee is excited about the work planned for the coming year and we look forward to your continued support for MAG activities and contribution of your data to MAG surveys. In turn, we look forward to sharing the results of surveys and outcomes of activities, which we hope will support your own practice and services.

 

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