Nutritional Preceptorship Program

        A group of recent graduates and nutrition students gathered in a nutritionist’s home to discover the best way to create a proper nutrition practice. Where should we begin with each client? How could our initial consultation include recording their medical history, analyzing their deficiencies, and creating an individualized protocol for their complaints? We had absorbed a great deal of information in our courses but very little about which nutritional products to recommend and how to address our clients’ issues using these remedies and supplements in conjunction with diet and lifestyle changes. We were extremely fortunate to find experts in our field willing to work with us.  Shelley Harris met with us, initially, and introduced us to professional products that would give us the best results. After our first meeting, we all agreed that we needed to meet on a regular basis.

         Our mentor, Carola Barczak, one of the first holistic nutritionists in Ontario, was brilliant. Each month, Carola would bring in a new client and replicate ‘the first visit’ – interpreting the results of their Nutribody Questionnaire, asking the questions that would best elicit a complete medical history, and, ultimately, making the first month’s recommendations – all in the first 90-minute visit! We also had Lynne Hinton providing Live Blood Cell Analysis onsite. Carola taught us how to begin with each client, which issues to focus on, and which product lines would give us the best results. As recipients of Carola’s vast knowledge and novices in this field, Gilda, Lynne and Marlene knew what it was like to be starting out with feelings of “not knowing enough”. By attending the NPP meetings, they grew to appreciate what would be most useful for new and existing practitioners. It was out of this general need for Knowledge, Experience and Support that, in September, 1997, the Nutritional Preceptorship Program was born.