Healthy Lifestyle Medicine in the Traditional Healthcare Environment—Primary Care and Cardiac Rehabilitation

There is unquestioned value of the need to incorporate Healthy Lifestyle Medicine (HLM) within the traditional models of healthcare. Primary care providers are well positioned to implement HLM as a routine aspect of their healthcare practice. Unfortunately, barriers for this to occur, including poor professional training in the components of HLM and limitations in the time they have available to spend with patients, result in inadequate delivery of HLM from primary care providers. Thus, new approaches for the delivery of HLM need to be developed that would allow primary care providers better, and more, opportunities to make patient referrals. Ideally, this would start with creating a culture change within communities that embraces the importance on living a healthy lifestyle. One opportunity which should be considered is expanding access to currently available options, such as cardiac rehabilitation programs and worksite wellness programs. Both types of programs already provide key elements of HLM within their existing structure. However, new models also need to be developed. Community-based HL centers comprising HL specialists including counselors, exercise physiologists, dietitians, and physical therapists, could be developed and become core locations for the promotion of HLM.