McGovern Medical School featured as standout lifestyle medicine institution by AAMC
McGovern Medical School was featured by the Association of American Medical Colleges as a standout lifestyle medicine institution in its Elevating Nutrition in Medical Education series, highlighting efforts to equip medical trainees with tools to prevent disease through healthful behaviors.
The Elevating Nutrition in Medical Education initiative aims to partner with nutrition and dietetic practitioners, public health professionals, and lifestyle medicine experts to co-develop and deliver interprofessional education. Rather than creating standalone modules, the project focuses on integrating and strengthening nutrition content within existing, high-impact curricula.
One leader in lifestyle medicine education at McGovern Medical School is Puja Gandhi, MD, MPH, assistant professor in the Department of Internal Medicine and director of the Improving Care Access and Realizing Empowerment (ICARE) program. After graduating from McGovern Medical School in 2018 and working in private practice, Gandhi recognized a gap in her training related to counseling patients on lifestyle medicine.
Upon returning to McGovern Medical School as a faculty member, Gandhi drew on her clinical experience to help lead the school’s lifestyle medicine concentration, which is grounded in the American College of Lifestyle Medicine’s six pillars: a whole-food, plant-based eating pattern; physical activity; restorative sleep; stress management; avoidance of risky substances; and positive social connections.
Through the ICARE program, McGovern students collaborate with dietetic interns and nursing students to work with clients from the Houston area and the Texas border region, including participation in a culinary medicine week. Held at the Nourish Research and Demonstration Kitchen at UTHealth Houston School of Public Health, the experience emphasizes culturally responsive discussions about lifestyle habits and includes hands-on cooking demonstrations focused on basic knife and cooking skills. Students also have opportunities to shadow lifestyle-related professionals and participate in journal clubs and wellness sessions such as meditation, yoga, and culinary medicine classes.
The Nourish Research and Demonstration Kitchen serves as the home for UTHealth Houston’s culinary medicine curriculum across medicine, dentistry, nursing, and public health and supports partnerships and training with Texas Medical Center institutions and community organizations. It is also used for education and research, allowing faculty to teach medical nutrition therapy, disease-specific diets, and healthy cooking techniques.