10th International Scientific Lifestyle Medicine Conference

On the eve of this year’s International Lifestyle Medicine Conference, on October 20, we are organizing a special pre‑conference event dedicated to healthcare professionals (physicians, nurses, and others), lifestyle medicine specialists, and students interested in effective communication with patients. 

We invite you to join training sessions and practical workshops that will provide not only knowledge but also hands‑on skills. The competencies you acquire will be applicable in your daily practice to help ensure more sustainable patient behavior change and more meaningful, effective communication. 

Karen Gregory‑Mercado, Ph.D., teaching professor at Arizona State University’s College of Health Solutions, is coming to Lithuania. She developed and led the USA recognized Health and Wellness Coaching NBHWC program. Having over 20 years of experience in health education, behavior change training and health coaching, she will share her expertise on how to: 

• help patients discover their inner motivation; 

• communicate in a way that makes people feel heard; 

• strengthen patient engagement in health behavior change; 

• implement health coaching; 

• build a collaborative, respectful, and empowering consultation environment; 

• apply supportive health coaching methods in clinical situations. 

This day will serve not only as a space for intensive practical training, but also as an opportunity to meet practicing lifestyle medicine and other healthcare professionals who will share their experience, clinical examples, and insights from everyday practice. 

In addition to the health coaching workshop, the pre‑conference will include practical session focused on developing clinical reasoning skills in lifestyle medicine. 

During the practical clinical case analysis workshop, healthcare professionals will have the opportunity to deepen their knowledge in lifestyle medicine and learn to apply it systematically in everyday clinical practice. 

Throughout the interactive sessions, real clinical patient cases will be examined by integrating theoretical foundations of lifestyle medicine with practical decision‑making. Participants will learn to connect a patient’s diseases, symptoms, and clinical data with lifestyle risk factors, identify priority problems, and develop an individualized lifestyle medicine intervention plan. 

The mechanisms of action of various interventions, their clinical relevance, applicability, and implementation barriers will be explored. The workshop will be enriched with idea generation, teamwork, discussions, and the sharing of professional experience. 

In addition, a third practical workshop will be led by an international team of three specialists. LSMU will be represented by Prof. Vilma Kriaučionienė from the Department of Preventive Medicine, Faculty of Public Health – a physician, lifestyle medicine specialist and researcher with many years of experience in studying population nutrition, risk factors for obesity and other chronic diseases, and their prevention. 

She will be joined by colleagues from the Institute of Human Nutrition Sciences at the Warsaw University of Life Sciences: Prof. Danuta Gajewska – a dietitian and researcher whose professional and scientific work focuses on the prevention and dietary management of obesity, cardiovascular and other chronic diseases, as well as the dietary management of inflammatory conditions and food allergies; and Prof. Joanna Myszkowska-Ryciak – a dietitian specialising in child nutrition, obesity, eating disorders and the prevention of nutrition-related diseases, an active participant in international projects, and Vice-President of the Polish Dietetic Association. 

In these interactive, case-based workshops, participants will analyse clinical cases, assess patients’ dietary habits and nutrition-related problems, discuss factors influencing dietary change, and develop a “menu” of clinically appropriate solutions. They will also explore how to communicate with a patient who believes that following a strict diet is the only way to lose weight. 

Working in groups, participants will discuss which dietary changes should be prioritised for each patient, formulate a patient-centred SMART goal, and develop a long-term follow-up plan. Presentation of the clinical decisions and a joint discussion will provide an opportunity to share professional insights and learn from different perspectives. 

This event is designed for both beginners and experienced professionals who wish to strengthen their skills in supporting patient behavior change and creating sustainable, patient‑centered solutions — it will be a space for safe experimentation and learning. 

During the event, you will also enjoy delicious snacks.   

At the end of the event the participants are invited to a guided tour at the Museum of the History of Lithuanian Medicine and Pharmacy.

Programme

Venue – LSMU Faculty of Public Health, Tilžės St. 18, Building 12.