‘Teaching kitchen’ cooks up basics for health sciences students at UCLA

Spinach, eggs, tomatoes, skillets and spatulas are not typically in a health professional ’s toolkit. But for some UCLA students, they eventually might be.At UCLA Health Sciences, students are learning about nutrition and food preparation in what might seem an unlikely place — not a classroom but rather a kitchen in a store better known for high-end kitchenware: Sur La Table. The store is playing host to a so-called “teaching kitchen,” as part of a pilot program that teaches healthy eating and cooking skills to students in the David Geffen School of Medicine at UC LA, Fielding School of Public Health, the dental school and the nursing school. Taught by two UCLA dietitians and a chef, the class has already taught one cohort; now it’s gearing up for another — the second of what organizers hope will become a more formal part of the curriculum.The fact that the students also learn about related disciplines is a bonus.“The idea behind the class was to improve our preparation of medical students, who are, after all, future physicians,” said Dr. Clarence Braddock, vice dean of education in the medical school. “We wanted to give them a deeper knowledge of nutrition, so they can better help their patients — a nd with nutrition playing an increasingly vital role in every aspect of medicine — to better interact with nutrition professionals.”Too often, doctors, dentists, nurses and public health workers tell people to “eat a healthy diet,” without knowing how ...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news