Claire
Claire is a Registered Dietitian, having practiced dietetics for over a decade, the majority of which in high-level government hospitals, where her love and passion for clinical paediatric dietetics developed.
After graduating with a BSc (Hons) Dietetics degree from the University of Stellenbosch, Claire completed her community service year at a district level hospital in Kwa-Zulu Natal. With experience in both district and regional hospitals, Claire followed her passion for clinical dietetics and moved to a position as a clinical dietitian at the quaternary level Inkosi Albert Luthuli Central Hospital, Durban. Here she concentrated on high care and ICU patients (both paediatrics and adults), and on paediatrics, including oncology, burns and paediatric surgery. It was during this time that she formulated the subject matter for her Master’s thesis.
After relocating to Cape Town with her family, Claire settled at Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital and her passion for evidence-based paediatric clinical dietetics grew from strength to strength. She completed her Masters degree in Nutrition from the University of Stellenbosch where her thesis was based on paediatric oncology, specifically solid tumours in children.
Susan
Susan is a Registered Dietitian and has a special interest in paediatric clinical nutrition.
After obtaining a Bachelor of Consumer Science degree from the University of Stellenbosch, Susan spent a number of years working in Product Development in both South Africa and the United Kingdom. During this time she developed products and recipes for, amongst others, Woolworths, Starbucks and Delice de France. While in the UK, she completed a Post Graduate Certificate in Education from the University of South Africa. Subsequent to her return to South Africa and time in education, Susan decided to pursue her interest in nutrition – obtaining a BSc (med) (hons) Nutrition and Dietetics degree from the University of Cape Town.
Following her community service at Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital, Susan was asked to stay on permanently, allowing her to gain invaluable clinical experience at this exceptional hospital. Here, she presented regular talks on topics such as neuro developmental feeding issues, and had the opportunity to present lectures at the Smith & Nephew Ziyasha International Burns Symposium which hosted invited surgeons from around the world. Susan was actively involved in managing general medicine and sub-specialities patients on an in-patient and outpatient level including burns, feeding difficulties, malnutrition, cardiology, respiratory, PEGs and gastrostomies, and gastrointestinal and respiratory conditions, such as malabsorption and cystic fibrosis.
Susan continues to pursue her passion for paediatric nutrition in private practice, ensuring parents are provided with evidence-based advice and that nutrition becomes a healthy and exciting part of family life. Having her own young family, she understands how important and challenging this can be.
Michelle
Michelle is a registered dietitian with an inherent desire to help others; using evidence based information and an individualised approach.
After graduating with a BSc (Hons) degree cum laude from the University of Stellenbosch, Michelle began her community service year at Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital, where her love and passion for working with children, and educating their parents was ignited and nurtured. Michelle worked in the gastroenteritis and short stay wards seeing a variety of patients. She ran the paediatric obesity clinic as well as general medical outpatients seeing children with constipation, feeding issues, cerebral palsy, gastrostomies and malnutrition amongst others. After her community service year Michelle was fortunate to stay on at Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital in a locum position where her valuable clinical experience in a range of areas expanded further. The oncology ward, a general medical ward, infectious diseases and feeding clinics with a speech therapist were among her main responsibilities in this position. Over and above the extensive clinical experience gained during her time at Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital, she was able to see the profound value of creativity, patience and thinking out of the box when working with paediatrics.
Membership
Garrett Cooley-Maree & Associate Dietitians are all members of the Health Professionals Council of South Africa (HPCSA) and Association for Dietetics in South Africa(ADSA). Claire & Susan are also members of SAGES and ALLSA
