Tag Archives: Bournemouth Uni

Health professionals learn more about nutrition for cancer survivors

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Health professionals found out more about the right nutrition and lifestyle advice to give cancer survivors at a masterclass jointly organised by Bournemouth University and Royal Bournemouth Hospital.

Health professionals attended a masterclass jointly organised by Bournemouth University and Royal Bournemouth Hospital.

Evidence increasingly shows the importance of a good diet and gentle exercise for cancer survivors – with improved survival rates, physical and psychological wellbeing and a reduced risk of cancer recurring.

The free Nutrition for Survivors Beyond Cancer masterclass on Thursday gave professionals involved in the care of cancer survivors information on current evidence and key advice to give patients.

It was jointly organised by Dr Jane Murphy, framework lead for nutrition and exercise science in BU’s School of Health and Social Care, and Grainne Ford, dietetic manager at Royal Bournemouth Hospital.

Jane said: “The purpose of the masterclass is to think about how we can improve the nutritional knowledge of people working on the frontline, who care for people who have had cancer and are living beyond cancer, and to think about how we can improve their nutritional skills.

“We also want to signpost them to important nutritional resources and a key evidence base that will support and improve their practice.”

The masterclass took place at the Village Hotel, next to Royal Bournemouth Hospital, and a diverse range of health professionals attended – from hospital managers to fitness instructors and cancer support group representatives.

Talks included the importance of gentle exercise, the evidence linking nutrition and cancer and how to broach the subject of the need to lose weight with cancer survivors.

There were also interactive workshops, where health professionals were given cancer survivor case studies and had to come up with a nutrition and lifestyle plan for them.

Grainne said that people often gained weight following cancer treatment – particularly for breast cancer – and it was important to raise the benefits of being a healthy weight sensitively once people were in remission.

“There is a lot more emerging evidence to show that diet and lifestyle can really help cancer survivors and it’s an area that patients can take into their own hands and feel empowered by doing something about the nutrition side of their life.”

She added: “The feedback that we have had shows a real need for this kind of class to help people understand what the current evidence is and what the recommendations are, so that they can take those practical things back to their patients and help them on their journey.”

Advice for cancer survivors includes limiting the amount of red and processed meat they eat, avoiding sugary drinks and alcohol and being active for at least 30 minutes a day.

The masterclass also helped to dispel some of the common myths about cancer and nutrition – such as the fact that dietary supplements alone do not benefit cancer survivors, and large doses are actually negatively associated with cancer recurrence.

Mary Milne, who works with breast cancer patients and is currently doing a PhD into cancer survivorship, was one of those who attended the masterclass.

She said: “Nutrition often comes up and we tend to find that patients are often informed via the internet – whether it’s right or it’s wrong – so it’s important that health professionals are able to give informed answers to the questions they are asked and to feel comfortable giving that answer.

“The masterclass has been excellent. I think it has been targeted perfectly to the health professionals – and we’ll leave feeling informed and ready to go back and hopefully just provide a better service for cancer survivors.”

A second free masterclass will take place at the Kingston Maurward Conference Centre in Dorchester, on Wednesday 21 November.

It will run from 10am–4pm and you can find more information and book online here

BU students win two international awards for short film

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An animated film created by students at Bournemouth University has won two awards at international film festivals.

Almighty Doodles was made by computer animation and sound design students as part of a coursework project last May.

But the one minute film has also impressed at international film festivals, and has been awarded both audience and jury prizes.

Simone Giampaolo, who is now in his third year of a BA Computer Animation Arts degree at BU, directed Almighty Doodles and entered it into one–minute film festivals in Switzerland and the USA.

Simone, 23, is from Switzerland, and was able to attend the One Minute Film and Video Festival 2012 – which took place in Aarau, Switzerland in August – to see the film win the Audience Award.

The group won a trophy and a camera – which they will share between them and use for future projects while they are studying.

“The festival was awesome but I didn’t expect the film to win any prizes,” said Simone, who lives in Winton while at BU.

“To be honest, we had to rush in the end to submit something but, even though there are some little mistakes, people still seem to like it.”

He added: “The film festivals are quite established and there were people there with a wide range of skills, and some film–makers who had been doing it for ten years.

“At the end of the day, this short was nothing more than a university assignment and I think it is really nice, and it really makes us proud that something we did for university could be screened abroad and watched by hundreds of people.

He added: “It was a really nice feeling and great that I could be there and explain how the film was made and the people who worked on it.”

He also submitted the film to the Film One Fest, which is based in New Jersey, in the USA, and takes place in July.

Although no–one from the group was able to attend the festival, they were told they had won a Jury Prize via email, and received a certificate through the post.

“It is quite a big festival,” Simone said. “I would have loved to have gone there. It has a giant screen in a field and they told me that more than 1,000 people watched the film.

“I never thought we would get an award at both the festivals, so we are all really happy.”

Almighty Doodles was created by Simone and fellow BA Computer Animation Arts students Jack Carrington and Danit Klibansky; BA Computer Visualisation and Animation students Rob Stratton and Rochelle Flynn, who are now in their third year; and BSc Music and Audio Technology students Andrei Leskovski and Asha Blatherwick – who worked on the sound for the film and have now finished their degrees at BU.

The film is inspired by the Book of Genesis, and takes place in ‘God’s studio’, showing him selecting the creatures he will bring to life. Man manages to escape before he can be rejected by God’s holy stamp.

“We were trying to make fun of humankind but do it in a funny, naïve way without offending anyone,” said Simone.

He added that he hopes the film’s success will inspire future students who have to do the coursework project, which involves pitching and creating a one minute film.

“After spending hours and hours on a project, you want your work to be showed somewhere,” he said.

“Hopefully letting this year’s second year students know that one of these film projects was shown at international film festivals will help them see it is not just an assessment.

“Bournemouth University is really renowned for computer animation, so the fact that we got to showcase our skills while we are still students is really positive.

View Almighty Doodles