Ruth brings nearly 10 years of industry experience to her current role, including a professional mentorship program under Dr. Jason Hawrelak at Gould’s Natural Medicine. As a clinician, Ruth’s main areas of interest include pain disorders, digestive conditions, autoimmune disease, chronic infection, mental wellbeing and maternal health.

Can you tell us a little bit about your background before joining Metagenics?

Before joining Metagenics I worked in clinical practice after completing an internship with Gould’s Natural Health in Tasmania. Prior to that I worked in health food stores whilst studying Naturopathy through ECNM in Brisbane. In my last years of study, I also interned with naturopathic supplement companies and worked reception for a multi-modality integrative practice.

What made you decide to pursue a career in natural health?

I was always interested in studying science, and one day I was flicking through a university guidebook and landed on the Endeavour College course listings and was immediately interested. I was really attracted to the idea understanding how the whole body functions, and then having the skills to evaluate scientific research, and then with that knowledge deliver holistic healthcare that works with the body. It really struck me as a practical problem-solving approach to helping people.

How do you put what you studied into practice?

In my current role that involves producing education and resources, I’m always thinking about practical messages and solutions that are useful and realistic for patients. It’s a great thing to have lots of knowledge, but the key to being a great naturopath is breaking down complex information for patients so they can understand what you want them to do and why. I apply that skillset to producing articles and resources using the latest science, communicating it in a way that I hope leaves practitioners feeling more aware and empowered to connect their patients to effective solutions.

What’s a typical day for you?

My average day varies a lot, but a typical workload in the last few weeks has involved:

• Writing and proofing an informative 800-word article on metabolic health
• Developing campaign materials including EDMs for our upcoming metabolic health webinar
• Writing and editing a 3000-word educational executive summary – which is a 15-minute read that summarises how science-based nutritional, herbal, behavioural and lifestyle treatments can aid metabolic health
• Reviewing scientific research on natural ingredients for metabolic dysfunction, while following up primary references to explore interesting statistics and trends that are useful to practitioners

What’s the best part of your job?

Knowing that my ability to understand complex research and communicate it clearly helps others practice more effectively and confidently.

What’s one of your proudest moments?

Earlier this year I was very proud to present a webinar developed by my amazing team on the topic of soothing anxiety that showcased an amazing herbal formula with lavender oil, lemon balm and L-theanine. But overall, I feel a huge sense of pride just from appreciating the skills my team brings to producing excellent education.

What do you get up to when you’re not at work?

I like to spend time with my beautiful rescue dog, and I also I love training Brazilian jiu jitsu, which is a very technical martial art with endless learning and self-growth to be experienced 😊

What’s next for you?

Ongoing learning 😊 I’m looking forward to producing excellent education and honing my communication skills over the next few years.