The Marie Taylor Award for Excellence in Long-Term Care, Seniors Nutrition and Dietetic Practice was established by Dietitians of Canada to recognize dietitians across Canada who carry on the legacy of Marie Taylor as a “visionary champion for the dietetic profession and advocate for the rights and well-being of the elderly.”
I am thrilled, once again, a Northern Health dietitian has been selected for this honour. Erin Branco is a visionary champion and this award is very well-deserved.
Erin completed her UBC Dietetic Internship with Northern Health in 2015 and has brought passion and creativity to her work ever since. Although she began her career working with adult inpatients at UHNBC, her focus has been in long-term care where she has held her current role as the Dietitian for Gateway Lodge, Parkside Care Facility, and Jubilee Lodge since 2016.
Erin strongly values people and relationships. She strives to enrich the lives of those around her through the work she does every day. This applies to the people she serves and those she works alongside on the interprofessional team.
Erin loves to connect people in long-term care with food, both in the dining room and in the garden. She has been instrumental in the development of a garden project, including a garden club, where people in long-term care are able to plant, grow, tend to, and harvest food on-site. The project continues to grow with the recent donation to Northern Health of hydroponic green walls to grow food year-round, inside some care homes across the region. As well, because of her involvement in the development of a Northern Health policy, sites across the region are now able to serve food grown on-site to patients and people in long-term care. People get to enjoy the taste of fresh herbs and vegetables, that they helped grow, in some of their meals and snacks throughout the year.
Erin is a real champion of this work and continues to think of creative ways to expand the growing and harvesting of food in long-term care homes. She shares her learning with colleagues and is inspiring others in the region, and across Canada, to try similar things in their settings. She participated in a research project through UNBC and co-authored a publication in 2022, focused on the benefits and feasibility of garden programs in long-term care. As well, she has presented on these garden initiatives with her colleague, Robyn Turner-Klopper, across Canada. Most recently, they co-presented at the International Congress of Nutrition and Dietetics, which was hosted in Toronto, in June of this year.
Erin is seen as a resource to other dietitians in the health authority when it comes to seniors' nutrition care. She is a wealth of knowledge and encourages others to continue to learn, grow, and provide the best care possible to the people they serve. Through her leadership as the Chair of the Northern Health Long-Term Care Dietitian Community of Practice, she has enabled the dietitian group to standardize and update various processes around nutrition assessment, documentation and diet ordering, and liberalization. She is passionate about the work dietitians can do around seniors' nutrition and enjoys spreading that passion to other dietitians, students, and health care colleagues.
Here are some things Erin’s colleagues had to say about her:
“Erin is a great team player with all aspects of her role as a dietitian in long-term care. She is always looking at ways to improve the care to the people she serves.”
– Stefanie Finch, Manager – Food and Nutrition Systems
“Erin is so personable which makes collaborating with her a joy! She’s smart and passionate and has been an innovator in her profession.”
– Judy April, Dietitian with the Allied Health Resource Team for Older Adults
Congratulations Erin, on this recognition of all your hard work on behalf of Northerners!
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