@penelopevlove | penny.love@deakin.edu.au
I first joined the INfant Feeding, Active play and NuTrition (INFANT) team several years ago as a postdoctoral researcher. I’m now a Principal Investigator and part of the Implementation Group of the NHMRC Partnership Project – scaling up INFANT across Victoria.
I’m also a senior lecturer at Deakin University’s Institute for Physical Activity and Nutrition (IPAN). My research focuses on translation, implementation and sustainability of early childhood prevention at scale to inform the identification of key leverage points within existing service delivery systems. I am also the Deputy Course Director for Deakin’s Master of Dietetics course in the School of Exercise and Nutrition Sciences.
Being involved in the implementation of INFANT is extremely meaningful for me as a professional working in preventative health. It has given me an outlet for my passion for equitable access to healthy food and to have significant impact on families, medical practitioners and their communities.
I enjoy working with the INFANT team, especially as we continue to consult MCH nurses and the wider community to implement INFANT together. For me, it’s important we, as academics, engage, consult and co-design implementation with our INFANT facilitators so they feel comfortable and supported to deliver it in their communities. From a research perspective, I’m interested in exploring existing systems and asking: how can we embed evidence-based practice within the work that health practitioners are already doing?
Learn more about Dr Penny Love and the INFANT team here.