Foundation Course

BSEM has a long relationship with the Australasian College for Nutritional and Environmental Medicine (ACNEM); in fact the previous president of ACNEM is a longstanding BSEM member!

ACNEM has been offering training in Nutritional and Environmental Medicine since 1982, and the ACNEM training is regarded as unique in the world and is accredited by the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners' (RACGP) Quality Improvement and Continuing Professional Development (QI&CPD) Program. Their learning Modules are strongly referenced and presented by leading clinicians including some BSEM members. Their emphasis is always on ‘putting it into practice’, with guidelines and practical tools to aid implementation right from the beginning, something the BSEM strongly endorses.

Whilst the course can be very useful as a refresher for experienced practitioners of Environmental Medicine, it is designed as an entry level aimed at medical professionals who want to gain a basic understanding of the principles of Ecological/Functional Medicine e.g. GPs, consultants, health care practitioners or students of both disciplines. The lectures vary in their degree of difficulty, some are more basic but others require a sound medical knowledge. We have nevertheless decided to open the training to members of the public as well, as we know that there are lots of patients or carers that over the years have gained enough medical understanding to find this course useful.

The Foundation Level online training consists of two Modules, each containing eight video lectures and accompanying slides and reference notes. Lecture length varies, but they generally last from 60 - 90 minutes each. In total the two Modules represent maximum 30 hours of training. The online learning modules allow you to view lectures exactly as they were delivered at a face-to-face course, complete with questions from the floor and panel discussions. It's the closest thing to actually being in the classroom, except that you will be able to do this from the comfort of your own computer, tablet or smartphone. Participants have to become a member of the BSEM first and once they sign up/commit to the training, they gain access to online content for a 6 month period for each module (i.e. twelve months in total) and are required to undertake a number of activities to obtain certification. These activities include prescribed reading, writing a case-study and a short online exam at the end.

In collaboration with ACNEM, we will provide support throughout the course and answer any question occurring during the time of training. On successful completion of the training participants will receive a Certificate of Participation from BSEM and ACNEM. This certificate entitles doctors or other eligible practitioners to have their details published on the Find A Practitioner List on the BSEM website and to participate in our peer group activities. Participants are also invited to join our additional Training Days every 6 months to tailor the online learning to the specifics of our UK practices and patients.

The usual cost of the course is £1350 - currently reduced to £850. The cost for the practical training days is NOT included in this price.

The topics covered in the two Foundation Level Modules are detailed below:

MODULE 1

Topic 1. Macronutrients

Topic 2. Anti-inflammatory diet

Topic 3. Functional clinical assessment

Topic 4. Cardiometabolic conditions

Topic 5. Comparing dietary approaches

Topic 6. Micronutrients

Topic 7. Introduction to the gastrointestinal system and the microbiome

Topic 8. Mental health: biochemical pathways, methylation and pyrroles

Topic 9. NEM practice – what you need to know

MODULE 2

Topic 10. Introduction to women’s health

Topic 11. Introduction to children’s health

Topic 12. An introduction to environmental medicine

Topic 13. Lifestyle medicine – stress, sleep and exercise

Topic 14. An introduction to immune dysfunction

Topic 15. Cognitive decline

Topic 16. An introduction to epigenetics

Topic 17. Drug-nutrient interactions

You will be contacted by a member of the training admin team to discuss your interest further.

Course Terms and Conditions:

You may cancel your registration at any point prior to receiving your online access for a full refund minus an administration fee of £50. Once you have received your online access and password there is no refund even if you have not started the online training. If you want to extend your online access you may do so 1 month at a time for a fee of £55 per month.