Spotlight on Dr. Jessica Lieffers

Bio

Dr. Jessica Lieffers is an Assistant Professor and Registered Dietitian in the Division of Nutrition and Dietetics. She completed her PhD in Health Studies and Gerontology at the University of Waterloo and her BSc and MSc degrees at the University of Alberta.  Jessica teaches undergraduate nutrition courses in professional practice.  She is also passionate about undergraduate student research and incorporated a first year research experience into one of her courses in Fall 2018. She is a member of and volunteer with Dietitians of Canada.

Research

Jessica has conducted research in various areas relevant for dietitians, including ehealth, cancer, and the Nutrition Care Process. Her current research primarily focuses on nutrition and dental health. Some current projects include understanding dietary intakes of children having dental treatment under general anesthesia for severe cases of tooth decay, nutrition care practices of dietitians and dental professionals for dental diseases, and patient perspectives on nutrition and dental health.  She has received research funding for work on nutrition and dental health from the Canadian Foundation for Dietetic Research and the Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation Establishment Grant. 

Recent Publications

Lövestam E, Vivanti A, Steiber A, Boström AM, Devine A, Haughey O, Kiss CM, Lang NR, Lieffers J, Lloyd L, O'Sullivan TA, Papoutsakis C, Thoresen L, Orrevall Y; INIS Consortium. The International Nutrition Care Process and Terminology Implementation Survey: towards a global evaluation tool to assess individual practitioner implementation in multiple countries and languages. J Acad Nutr Diet. 2019 Feb;119(2):242-260.

Lövestam E, Steiber A, Vivanti A, Boström AM, Devine A, Haughey O, Kiss CM, Lang NR, Lieffers J, Lloyd L, O'Sullivan TA, Papoutsakis C, Peersen C, Thoresen L, Orrevall Y; INIS Consortium. Use of the Nutrition Care Process and Nutrition Care Process Terminology in an international cohort reported by an online survey tool. J Acad Nutr Diet. 2019;119(2):225-241.

Nshimyumukiza L, Lieffers JRL, Ekwaru JP, Ohinmaa A, Veugelers PJ. Temporal changes in diet quality and the associated economic burden in Canada. PLOS One 2018 Nov 8;13(11):e0206877.

Lieffers JRL, Valaitis RF, George T, Wilson M, Macdonald J, Hanning RM. A qualitative evaluation of the eaTracker® mobile app. Nutrients. 2018 Oct 9;10(10). pii: E1462.

Lieffers JRL, Ekwaru J, Ohinmaa A, Veugelers P. The economic burden of not meeting food recommendations in Canada: the cost of doing nothing. PLOS One. 2018;13(4):e0196333.

Lieffers JRL, Haresign H, Mehling C, Arocha JF, Hanning RM. A qualitative evaluation of contact centre dietitian support and electronic motivational messaging for eaTracker My Goals users. Can J Diet Pract Res. 2018;79(2):67-73.

Lieffers JRL, Arocha JF, Grindrod K, Hanning RM. Experiences and perceptions of adults accessing publicly available nutrition behavior-change mobile apps for weight management. J Acad Nutr Diet. 2018; 118(2):229-239.e3.

Lieffers JRL, Haresign H, Mehling C, Arocha JF, Hanning RM. The website-based eaTracker® My Goals feature: a qualitative evaluation. Public Health Nutr. 2017;20(5):859-869.