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Someone once told Christina Tennyson, MD, that clinical medicine was a grind. Instead of veering away from the profession, she dove in. Medicine will always have its frustrations, she acknowledged.
However, “finding areas that interest me and incorporating those into clinical practice has really helped me enjoy the practice of medicine,” said Dr. Tennyson, who works at Augusta Health in Fishersville, Va.
It has also inspired her to think outside the box in her gastroenterology practice. What her patients eat and the lifestyle choices they make is a central focus of her work.
Q: Why did you choose GI?
Dr. Tennyson: I always had an interest in nutrition. During training at medical school at NYU [New York University], I also really loved learning all I could about internal medicine. I worked with a great surgical team as a student and enjoyed being in the operating room. Although I knew I didn’t want to enter surgery, the experience encouraged me to pursue gastroenterology as it involved nutrition, internal medicine, and procedures as well as my favorite organ, the small bowel. I worked with some great mentors in gastroenterology, such as Dr. David Metz and Dr. Dave Katzka, at the University of Pennsylvania as a resident. I enjoyed taking care of patients with both acute and chronic conditions as well as the mix of doing procedures and seeing patients in the office. It also provided me the opportunity to incorporate nutrition into my clinical practice.
Q: What gives you the most joy in your day-to-day practice?
Dr. Tennyson: I enjoy helping my patients make meaningful lifestyle changes that can positively impact digestive health and well-being. I try to address topics related to lifestyle medicine in most of my clinical visits including eating more fiber/plants, exercise, positive relationships, and stress management. Many of the conditions we treat as gastroenterologists can benefit from addressing aspects of lifestyle along with our conventional medical therapies. I reinforce that attention to these areas can make a difference. I enjoy sharing recipes, books, and websites that I have found helpful.
Q: How has your job changed since you first began your career?
Dr. Tennyson: After fellowship, I joined the faculty at Columbia University and worked at the Celiac Disease Center seeing patients, teaching, and performing clinical research under the mentorship of Peter Green, MD, and Suzanne Lewis, MD. It was a great opportunity to learn and practice in a tertiary center. I later switched roles and joined a general multispecialty community practice in Brooklyn [N.Y.] affiliated with an academic medical center. After practicing in New York for 10 years, I left my clinical practice and performed locums work for several years in underserved rural areas. I enjoyed working in rural areas and took a permanent position at a community hospital in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley.
Q: Describe your biggest practice-related challenge and what you are doing to address it.
Dr. Tennyson: The small, rural community hospital where I currently work does not have the same resources and staffing as urban tertiary centers. While we are taking care of the community in our general gastroenterology practice, we’ve also launched an integrated care model in our hospital. We have collaborated with behavioral health, dietitians, nurses, health coaches, exercise physiologists as well as other members of the community, including farmers and a chef. We have performed some innovative, engaging programs, including fermentation workshops, cooking classes, farm walks, and mindfulness programs.
Q: What are you most proud of accomplishing?
Dr. Tennyson: I am proud that I took a nontraditional path after training to do what I enjoy and find rewarding. I received certification during GI fellowship at Mount Sinai [N.Y.] as a physician nutrition specialist. I later completed a fellowship in integrative medicine at the University of Arizona, received certification in lifestyle medicine, and completed coursework in culinary medicine. I really enjoyed doing locums work taking care of patients in other parts of the country, like Mississippi or Maine. I’ve enjoyed working in more rural areas and bringing some innovative programs to the community.
Q: What teacher or mentor had the greatest impact on you?
Dr. Tennyson: Dr. Anthony Grieco while I was a student at NYU. He is an astute clinician, always listened to his patients, loved clinical medicine, and had an endless fund of knowledge. I wanted to be a doctor like him. During my fellowship at Mount Sinai, I was also exposed to many great mentors including Dr. Lloyd Mayer, Dr. Jerome Waye, Dr. Steve Itzkowitz, and Dr. Blair Lewis who encouraged my interest in nutrition and small bowel diseases.
Lightning round
What's your superpower?
Finding fun in mundane things
Favorite movie to quote?
The Princess Bride
What is your favorite form of exercise?
A hike in the woods
Name one thing on your bucket list.
Galapagos Islands trip before my kids grow up
Cats or dogs?
Dogs
Summer or winter?
Summer
Someone once told Christina Tennyson, MD, that clinical medicine was a grind. Instead of veering away from the profession, she dove in. Medicine will always have its frustrations, she acknowledged.
However, “finding areas that interest me and incorporating those into clinical practice has really helped me enjoy the practice of medicine,” said Dr. Tennyson, who works at Augusta Health in Fishersville, Va.
It has also inspired her to think outside the box in her gastroenterology practice. What her patients eat and the lifestyle choices they make is a central focus of her work.
Q: Why did you choose GI?
Dr. Tennyson: I always had an interest in nutrition. During training at medical school at NYU [New York University], I also really loved learning all I could about internal medicine. I worked with a great surgical team as a student and enjoyed being in the operating room. Although I knew I didn’t want to enter surgery, the experience encouraged me to pursue gastroenterology as it involved nutrition, internal medicine, and procedures as well as my favorite organ, the small bowel. I worked with some great mentors in gastroenterology, such as Dr. David Metz and Dr. Dave Katzka, at the University of Pennsylvania as a resident. I enjoyed taking care of patients with both acute and chronic conditions as well as the mix of doing procedures and seeing patients in the office. It also provided me the opportunity to incorporate nutrition into my clinical practice.
Q: What gives you the most joy in your day-to-day practice?
Dr. Tennyson: I enjoy helping my patients make meaningful lifestyle changes that can positively impact digestive health and well-being. I try to address topics related to lifestyle medicine in most of my clinical visits including eating more fiber/plants, exercise, positive relationships, and stress management. Many of the conditions we treat as gastroenterologists can benefit from addressing aspects of lifestyle along with our conventional medical therapies. I reinforce that attention to these areas can make a difference. I enjoy sharing recipes, books, and websites that I have found helpful.
Q: How has your job changed since you first began your career?
Dr. Tennyson: After fellowship, I joined the faculty at Columbia University and worked at the Celiac Disease Center seeing patients, teaching, and performing clinical research under the mentorship of Peter Green, MD, and Suzanne Lewis, MD. It was a great opportunity to learn and practice in a tertiary center. I later switched roles and joined a general multispecialty community practice in Brooklyn [N.Y.] affiliated with an academic medical center. After practicing in New York for 10 years, I left my clinical practice and performed locums work for several years in underserved rural areas. I enjoyed working in rural areas and took a permanent position at a community hospital in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley.
Q: Describe your biggest practice-related challenge and what you are doing to address it.
Dr. Tennyson: The small, rural community hospital where I currently work does not have the same resources and staffing as urban tertiary centers. While we are taking care of the community in our general gastroenterology practice, we’ve also launched an integrated care model in our hospital. We have collaborated with behavioral health, dietitians, nurses, health coaches, exercise physiologists as well as other members of the community, including farmers and a chef. We have performed some innovative, engaging programs, including fermentation workshops, cooking classes, farm walks, and mindfulness programs.
Q: What are you most proud of accomplishing?
Dr. Tennyson: I am proud that I took a nontraditional path after training to do what I enjoy and find rewarding. I received certification during GI fellowship at Mount Sinai [N.Y.] as a physician nutrition specialist. I later completed a fellowship in integrative medicine at the University of Arizona, received certification in lifestyle medicine, and completed coursework in culinary medicine. I really enjoyed doing locums work taking care of patients in other parts of the country, like Mississippi or Maine. I’ve enjoyed working in more rural areas and bringing some innovative programs to the community.
Q: What teacher or mentor had the greatest impact on you?
Dr. Tennyson: Dr. Anthony Grieco while I was a student at NYU. He is an astute clinician, always listened to his patients, loved clinical medicine, and had an endless fund of knowledge. I wanted to be a doctor like him. During my fellowship at Mount Sinai, I was also exposed to many great mentors including Dr. Lloyd Mayer, Dr. Jerome Waye, Dr. Steve Itzkowitz, and Dr. Blair Lewis who encouraged my interest in nutrition and small bowel diseases.
Lightning round
What's your superpower?
Finding fun in mundane things
Favorite movie to quote?
The Princess Bride
What is your favorite form of exercise?
A hike in the woods
Name one thing on your bucket list.
Galapagos Islands trip before my kids grow up
Cats or dogs?
Dogs
Summer or winter?
Summer
Someone once told Christina Tennyson, MD, that clinical medicine was a grind. Instead of veering away from the profession, she dove in. Medicine will always have its frustrations, she acknowledged.
However, “finding areas that interest me and incorporating those into clinical practice has really helped me enjoy the practice of medicine,” said Dr. Tennyson, who works at Augusta Health in Fishersville, Va.
It has also inspired her to think outside the box in her gastroenterology practice. What her patients eat and the lifestyle choices they make is a central focus of her work.
Q: Why did you choose GI?
Dr. Tennyson: I always had an interest in nutrition. During training at medical school at NYU [New York University], I also really loved learning all I could about internal medicine. I worked with a great surgical team as a student and enjoyed being in the operating room. Although I knew I didn’t want to enter surgery, the experience encouraged me to pursue gastroenterology as it involved nutrition, internal medicine, and procedures as well as my favorite organ, the small bowel. I worked with some great mentors in gastroenterology, such as Dr. David Metz and Dr. Dave Katzka, at the University of Pennsylvania as a resident. I enjoyed taking care of patients with both acute and chronic conditions as well as the mix of doing procedures and seeing patients in the office. It also provided me the opportunity to incorporate nutrition into my clinical practice.
Q: What gives you the most joy in your day-to-day practice?
Dr. Tennyson: I enjoy helping my patients make meaningful lifestyle changes that can positively impact digestive health and well-being. I try to address topics related to lifestyle medicine in most of my clinical visits including eating more fiber/plants, exercise, positive relationships, and stress management. Many of the conditions we treat as gastroenterologists can benefit from addressing aspects of lifestyle along with our conventional medical therapies. I reinforce that attention to these areas can make a difference. I enjoy sharing recipes, books, and websites that I have found helpful.
Q: How has your job changed since you first began your career?
Dr. Tennyson: After fellowship, I joined the faculty at Columbia University and worked at the Celiac Disease Center seeing patients, teaching, and performing clinical research under the mentorship of Peter Green, MD, and Suzanne Lewis, MD. It was a great opportunity to learn and practice in a tertiary center. I later switched roles and joined a general multispecialty community practice in Brooklyn [N.Y.] affiliated with an academic medical center. After practicing in New York for 10 years, I left my clinical practice and performed locums work for several years in underserved rural areas. I enjoyed working in rural areas and took a permanent position at a community hospital in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley.
Q: Describe your biggest practice-related challenge and what you are doing to address it.
Dr. Tennyson: The small, rural community hospital where I currently work does not have the same resources and staffing as urban tertiary centers. While we are taking care of the community in our general gastroenterology practice, we’ve also launched an integrated care model in our hospital. We have collaborated with behavioral health, dietitians, nurses, health coaches, exercise physiologists as well as other members of the community, including farmers and a chef. We have performed some innovative, engaging programs, including fermentation workshops, cooking classes, farm walks, and mindfulness programs.
Q: What are you most proud of accomplishing?
Dr. Tennyson: I am proud that I took a nontraditional path after training to do what I enjoy and find rewarding. I received certification during GI fellowship at Mount Sinai [N.Y.] as a physician nutrition specialist. I later completed a fellowship in integrative medicine at the University of Arizona, received certification in lifestyle medicine, and completed coursework in culinary medicine. I really enjoyed doing locums work taking care of patients in other parts of the country, like Mississippi or Maine. I’ve enjoyed working in more rural areas and bringing some innovative programs to the community.
Q: What teacher or mentor had the greatest impact on you?
Dr. Tennyson: Dr. Anthony Grieco while I was a student at NYU. He is an astute clinician, always listened to his patients, loved clinical medicine, and had an endless fund of knowledge. I wanted to be a doctor like him. During my fellowship at Mount Sinai, I was also exposed to many great mentors including Dr. Lloyd Mayer, Dr. Jerome Waye, Dr. Steve Itzkowitz, and Dr. Blair Lewis who encouraged my interest in nutrition and small bowel diseases.
Lightning round
What's your superpower?
Finding fun in mundane things
Favorite movie to quote?
The Princess Bride
What is your favorite form of exercise?
A hike in the woods
Name one thing on your bucket list.
Galapagos Islands trip before my kids grow up
Cats or dogs?
Dogs
Summer or winter?
Summer