Food as Medicine Expert: Amelia Gelnett

Amelia Gelnett, MPH

Amelia Gelnett has spent the last nine years designing, implementing, and measuring Food as Medicine programs for marginalized populations with chronic illnesses in domestic and international settings. She has emphasized sourcing produce from local and regenerative sources. In 2023, she completed her MPH at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public health with a focus in Food Systems, Human Nutrition, and U.S. Healthcare. Her prior degrees include a BA from Bloomsburg University, Health Sciences A.A. from North Country Community College, and a Therapeutic Recreation Certificate from SUNY Cortland. Amelia championed statewide advocacy and stakeholder engagement when she led the New York State Food as Medicine Coalition in 2023 and 2024. A former Comfort Food Community employee, she also helped spearhead our own Food as Medicine Programs! Currently, she is directing the medically tailored grocery accelerator, a research project aiming to measure the health and healthcare utilization impacts of nutrition services in the HRSN 1115 Demonstration Waiver for The Food Pantries for the Capital District.

Can you share your journey into the Food as Medicine field and what inspired you to focus on marginalized populations?

My background is composed of organic farming, social work, and environmental initiatives. Throughout my twenties I oscillated between working at The Alleged Farm and serving individuals who were unhoused, recuperating from sexual assault, or navigating mental illness. With this combination of skills, I was recruited by CFC and began working as their second (part-time) employee in 2016.

Within this role I researched produce prescriptions, medically tailored groceries, and food access models that could apply to our area’s healthcare system. I wrote logic models, proposals, timelines, and clarified partner roles to pitch to a variety of healthcare entities. Eventually this preparation paid off and we launched the Food Farmacy in 2018 with Hudson Headwaters. Then we launched the produce prescription programs at Glens Falls Farmers Market with CDPHP. This work was the official beginning of my food is medicine career. I’ve since led a medically tailored meal program serving cancer treatment patients, formed the New York State Food as Medicine Coalition, analyzed Coastal Ecuadorian diets to tailor food interventions for seniors with diabetes, and am currently working to evaluate nutrition services within the 1115 Demonstration Waiver.

The US’s wealth and health inequities have resulted in mass illness and quality of life disparities. The toll of being unable to afford healthy foods, compounding stress, and adverse childhood experiences devastates population health. Nourishing someone is powerful and enables them to effectively navigate life’s varied challenges. I am called to support others in need and to strategically engage and address barriers to health and wellbeing.

What are some of the key components you consider when designing Food as Medicine programs for individuals with chronic illnesses?

The more accessible you can make FAM programs, the better. Addressing as many social determinants of health such as transportation and access to culinary utensils in programs as possible enables their success. Ideally offering diverse and novel foods that can be explored and mixed along with introductory recipes makes eating exciting. Ensuring dedicated time with a RDN is also important to support individual’s understanding of nutrition and their particular health needs. Developing long term relationships with the participants is especially helpful in supporting lifestyle change.

How do you prioritize sourcing produce from local and regenerative sources and what benefits does this bring to the communities you serve?

Local foods require funding to support the farms and workers who grow them. You have to include this in your budget since it can be a higher sum than ordering food through another supply. Mapping out which farms are near your program and discussing what they typically grow and what items may be available and when are key steps to sourcing from them. There are many logistics to consider such as their picking schedule, how these foods will be transported, and invoicing schedules and needs. This requires an extra layer of care and relationship building but the benefits are profound.

Produce’s greatest flavor and nutrition are available at their harvest. Sourcing locally allows you to provide the highest quality ingredients while supporting your local community. You can inquire about the farm’s techniques in soil building, water conservation, if they’re allowing fields to go fallow, rotating crops, etc. The environmental benefits of these actions support our whole environment. Humanity is at climate critical time to value and sustain health for all forms of life. Consciously sourcing our foods is an empowering action with magnifying effects.

What are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced in implementing Food as Medicine programs in the communities you’ve worked with?

Connecting to the right employees who will move the project forward is a frequent challenge. There are many layers to healthcare organizations and competing priorities. Finding your champion is paramount to the progress of a program.

It’s difficult to obtain health data such as healthcare utilization and biometrics to evaluate the efficacy of a program. This sensitive content is understandably protected but it does make proving your impact difficult. There’s a strong emphasis on cost reduction for FIM programs despite other drugs or interventions not undergoing similar scrutiny. Demonstrating your cost benefit analysis is hard to do when BAAs or MOUs or refusals to share data are barriers.

What recommendations would you give to those looking to create impactful Food as Medicine initiatives in their own communities?

Evaluate your program’s strengths and review which layer of the Food is Medicine pyramid you could step into. Then begin to seek out examples of the programs, whether it be produce prescriptions, medically tailored groceries or meals from across the nation. Ample content is now publicly available and can be used to develop your own program. If you find an agency you’d like to emulate, reach out to them directly. Take the time to research and connect to others already blazing the trail. They’ll be able to share pitfalls and areas to be aware of that can save you time and effort.

If you’re looking to add on programs, be sure to sustain enough funds to hire employees to tackle them. It’s too common and easy to overstretch nonprofit staff. It’s better to retain employees to provide continuity, wisdom, and maintain stakeholder relationships than create detrimental chaos. Be realistic about where you are as an agency and your needs in staff time, overhead costs, space, and compliance requirements for working in healthcare. Take the time to plan for these items and acquire what you need.

Another key area is discussing these program ideas with the population you plan on serving. Identifying their individual needs and barriers and formulating your program to these items will yield the best results.