Functional Medicine Service at Starjumpz
Dr Elizabeth Corcoran – nee Elliott MBBS iBScPsy MRCPsych Institute for Functional Medicine Certified Practitioner (IFMCP)
British Society for Ecological Medicine and General Naturopathic Council.
Functional Medicine is one of the many ground breaking services on offer at Starjumpz, a centre of excellence in Crowborough that helps children and young people with learning, developmental and behavioural challenges.
She trained in the UK in Medicine (Royal Free and UCL Medical School) and Psychiatry (MRCPsych). She holds an intercalated BSc in Psychology from UCL and is a Certified Practitioner with the Institute for Functional Medicine (IFMCP). She is GMC registered.
Dr Liz’s clinical work emphasises understanding the whole person — not just symptoms — by exploring how genetics, environment, lifestyle, nutrition, psychology and physiology interact to influence health. She aims to support patients to make changes that improve resilience and long-term wellbeing.
In addition to her clinical practice, she is active in advocacy and charitable work related to health research and equity and the promotion of Functional Medicine within the UK. She was honoured to be apart of the team that spearheaded the passage of the Down Syndrome Act 2022, and to help coordinate the NDSPG Advisory Group of adults with Down syndrome.
Roles:
Board Member British College of Functional Medicine
Chair of the Downs Syndrome Research Foundation
Trustee National Down Syndrome Policy Group
Founding Board Member & Network Lead, Down Syndrome and Sleep Research Network
Dr Elizabeth Corcoran MB BS iBSc Psychology MRCPysch
What is Functional Medicine?
Functional medicine addresses the whole person, not just an isolated set of symptoms and can help children and families achieve better physical and mental health through tailored advice on nutrition and lifestyle. Research has broaden our understanding of areas such as the gut-brain link and how our emotional health can affect our physical health- Functional medicine brings all this together and treats us as unique whole individuals.
The relationship between core clinical imbalances and disease.
As the graphic illustrates, a diagnosis can be the result of more than one cause. For example, obesity can be caused by many different factors, including inflammation. Likewise, a cause such as inflammation may lead to a number of different diagnoses, including obesity. The precise manifestation of each cause depends on the individual’s genes, environment, and lifestyle, and only treatments that address the right cause will have lasting benefit beyond symptom suppression.
It has long been known that lifestyle interventions are key to reducing chronic disease as sole interventions, i.e. exercise or diet alone. Now the first retrospective cohort study of the functional medicine model, Cleveland Clinic researchers found that functional medicine was associated with improvements in health-related quality of life. The study was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association Network Open. This demonstrates the power of combining interventions and working in a personalised way with patient as the driver of change.
Hallmarks of a Functional Medicine approach include:
- Patient-centred care. The focus of functional medicine is on patient-centred care, promoting health as a positive vitality, beyond just the absence of disease.
- An integrative, science-based healthcare approach. Functional Medicine practitioners look “upstream” to consider the complex web of interactions in the patient’s history, physiology, and lifestyle that can lead to illness. The unique genetic makeup of each patient is considered, along with both internal (mind, body and spirit) and external (physical and social environment) factors that affect total functioning.
- Integrating best medical practices creating a focus on prevention through nutrition, diet, and exercise; use of the latest laboratory testing and other diagnostic techniques; and prescribed combinations of drugs and/or botanical medicines, supplements, therapeutic diets, detoxification programs, or stress-management techniques and psychotherapy.
Watch the whole talk from Dr Liz and Abir Hamza-Goodacre our Nutritional Therapist here.
To find out more about out Functional Medicine clinic email us at info@starjumpz.com
Testimonials:
“We have had a great experience with Dr Liz. The thorough questionnaires, her deep interest for her patient, her considerate and gentle manners, the comfortable and well located practice all contributed to give us a very good impression. Now in the process of gathering the data (through blood tests and other exams) that she asked for in order to have a more precise idea of the best possible treatment plan. We really appreciate the holistic and data-based approach which considers all the dimensions of the person’s health, very much needed for long term conditions. I would definitely recommend her services. ”
-Parent of teen
“It felt like a lot was riding on our first appointment. Dr Liz did such a sterling job of listening, clarifying, reassuring and moving us forward with suggestions and a plan – which is now unfolding, with a helpful level of guidance and motivation. Dr Liz brings that often-mentioned yet rarely-found ideal blend of friendly and professional!”
-Patient’s family member
“Dr Liz is a fabulous practitioner who really understands a complex medical picture and is capable of breaking treatment pathways down into achievable parts, especially in cases like ours which could often feel overwhelming. She is a great listener and has a capable and professional manner but manages to balance that with an approachable kindness which is usually hard to come by.”
-Parent
