Many people hear terms like lifestyle medicine, functional medicine, and integrative medicine and wonder how they differ. While these fields share some common ground in aiming to treat the whole person, their focus, methods, and evidence base are distinct.

Lifestyle Medicine
Lifestyle medicine is a medical specialty that uses evidence-based lifestyle changes to prevent, treat, and even reverse chronic disease. The core pillars include nutrition, physical activity, restorative sleep, stress management, avoidance of risky substances, and healthy relationships. Lifestyle medicine empowers people to make sustainable changes to the daily habits that have the biggest impact on long-term health. It is firmly grounded in scientific research and clinical guidelines.

Functional Medicine
Functional medicine looks at health through the lens of systems biology. It seeks to identify and address the “root causes” of illness, often by using detailed laboratory testing to examine genetics, metabolism, gut health, and more. While some people find it helpful, functional medicine often goes beyond the current scientific evidence, and not all approaches are supported by rigorous clinical trials.

Integrative Medicine
Integrative medicine combines conventional medical care with complementary or alternative therapies, such as acupuncture, meditation, massage, or herbal medicine. The focus is on treating the whole person—mind, body, and spirit—and using safe, effective practices from both mainstream and complementary health traditions.

In summary:

• Lifestyle medicine is evidence-based and focuses on sustainable behaviour change in daily life.
• Functional medicine emphasizes root-cause exploration, often using advanced or non-standard testing.
• Integrative medicine blends conventional care with selected complementary therapies.

All three approaches share a holistic view of health, but lifestyle medicine is unique in being a specialty grounded in the strongest clinical evidence.

No. Beth does not replace your regular GP. Your usual GP remains the central point of care for your medical needs, prescriptions, care plans, and acute or urgent issues.

Beth’s role is to complement this care by providing extended consultations that focus on lifestyle factors such as nutrition, physical activity, sleep, and stress management. These are areas that can be difficult to explore in depth during a standard GP appointment.

She works collaboratively with your regular GP, specialists, and allied health professionals to ensure that your care is coordinated, evidence-based, and supportive. Her aim is to add to your healthcare team, not replace it.

Yes. Beth values collaborative and coordinated care. After your consultation, she will write a clear letter back to your regular GP summarising your assessment, care plan, and any investigations or prescriptions (if relevant).

This ensures your usual GP remains central to your care, and that all members of your healthcare team are informed and working together. Beth believes strong communication between doctors is essential for safe, effective, and holistic care.

The number of appointments will vary depending on your individual health concerns and goals. Some patients may only need a single consultation, while others may benefit from ongoing care.

On average, most patients find value in the initial consultation plus two follow-up appointments.

Yes. As a fully qualified GP, Beth can prescribe medications when they are clinically relevant to your presentation.

Her approach is evidence-based and lifestyle-focused, so she may explore lifestyle strategies where appropriate, but medications remain an important part of care when needed. If medication is indicated, she will prescribe safely and appropriately, and ensure this is coordinated with your regular GP and healthcare team.

Supplements are not a main focus of Beth’s practice. Her approach is rooted in Lifestyle Medicine, which emphasises evidence-based changes to nutrition, physical activity, sleep, and stress management as the foundation of good health.

While she does not routinely provide integrative or alternative supplement advice, she may recommend certain supplements in cases where there is strong scientific evidence for their benefit, safety, and relevance to your health condition (for example, vitamin D or iron where deficiency is present).

Any advice on supplements will always be based on current medical evidence and considered alongside your overall care plan.

No. Beth is not anti-medication. She is a fully qualified GP who values the important role that medications play in managing many health conditions. When medication is clinically indicated, she fully supports its use.

Her approach is evidence-based and focused on whole-person care. This means that whenever possible, she also uses lifestyle strategies—such as nutrition, movement, sleep, and stress management—to prevent and manage health conditions alongside medical treatment.

The aim is not to replace medication, but to complement it. In some cases, effective lifestyle changes may reduce the need for higher doses or additional medications, but this is always considered in a safe, medically supervised way. Beth works collaboratively with patients’ regular GPs and specialists to ensure all care is coordinated, appropriate, and in the patient’s best interest.

Yes. If investigations such as blood tests, imaging, or other diagnostic studies are clinically relevant to your presentation, Beth can request them.

Any results will be reviewed with you, and shared with your regular GP and healthcare team to ensure your care remains coordinated and comprehensive.

Beth’s practice focuses on lifestyle medicine and preventative care, rather than acute or urgent presentations. Her consultations are designed to provide the time and space needed for in-depth assessment, personalised planning, and ongoing support around chronic disease, prevention, and wellbeing.

If you are experiencing an acute illness or urgent medical concern, it is important to see your regular GP or attend urgent care/emergency services as appropriate.

No, you do not need a referral to book an appointment with Beth — patients are welcome to self-refer.

However, if you are seeing Beth for support with an ongoing health condition, it can be very helpful if your regular GP provides a health summary and recent pathology results (if available). This helps ensure your care is coordinated and that Dr Beth has the full picture of your health.

Beth’s clinic is primarily focused on adult care. Her consultations are designed to support adults with chronic conditions, preventative health, and lifestyle change.

At this stage, she does not routinely see children. Families are encouraged to continue care for children through their regular GP or paediatric specialist as needed.

If you’re unsure whether Beth can assist with your particular health concern, please use the contact form on our website to provide a brief summary of your situation. Your enquiry will be reviewed and we will get back to you to let you know if Beth can help, or guide you to the most appropriate next steps.

You can access Beth’s Privacy Policy through Goldfields Medical Hub

This is a private service, and out-of-pocket costs are likely to apply for all consultations. Medicare rebates are available for those who are eligible. You can find more details on fees and rebates on the Pricing page.