University Hospitals Offers Impactful Lifestyle Medicine Course to all 32,000 Employees

CLEVELAND – University Hospitals (UH) is a leader in the national healthcare transformation focusing on providing proactive well-care that is as robust as the reactive sick-care system of treating disease. This approach to well-being is at the root of a new continuing education opportunity now being offered to all UH caregivers.

The American College of Lifestyle Medicine (ACLM) is providing continuing medical education courses at no cost to all 32,000 UH caregivers (both clinical and non-clinical employees). UH is among the first hospital systems to receive such a grant from ACLM. The “Lifestyle Medicine and Food as Medicine Essentials” course bundle provides a foundational, evidence-based introduction to the field of lifestyle medicine for the prevention and treatment of chronic disease. The course consists of three modules, four presentations and 5.5 hours of content.

“Taking care of others starts with taking care of ourselves. Health is one of our most precious gifts, and in health care we know it should never be taken for granted,” said Francoise Adan, MD, Chief Whole Health & Well-being Officer and the Christopher M. & Sara H. Connor Chair in Integrative Health, University Hospitals Health System and Director, UH Connor Whole Health. “The Whole Health approach prioritizes compassionate care centered on the patient’s entire well-being, and we believe this is the future of medicine.”

According to the CDC, six in ten American adults have a chronic disease and four in ten adults have two or more. Examples of chronic diseases include heart disease, diabetes, cancer and Alzheimer’s disease. It’s estimated that about 80 percent of chronic diseases are driven by lifestyle factors such as poor diet and lack of exercise. These statistics show an urgent need to transform Americans’ health as well as the healthcare system.

“Evidence supports pursuing non-pharmacologic treatments to fight and even reverse chronic disease. This is why we’re so passionate about bringing this lifestyle medicine training to all UH caregivers,” said Cliff Megerian, MD, FACS, UH Chief Executive Officer, and Jane and Henry Meyer Chief Executive Officer Distinguished Chair.

Lifestyle medicine is a medical specialty that focuses on six therapeutic lifestyle interventions as a primary way to treat chronic conditions:

ACLM is the medical professional society providing quality education and certification to those dedicated to clinical and worksite practice of lifestyle medicine as the foundation of a transformed and sustainable healthcare system.

Toby Bourisseau, 45, an advanced practice nurse at UH specializing in child psychiatry, completed the course within the first few days it was offered. She plans to use what she learned both personally and professionally.

“I want to help my patients beyond medication and becoming more educated about lifestyle medicine has taught me how to do that,” said Bourisseau. “I also plan to implement this information into my own habits and support my daughter who is battling COVID Long-Haul Syndrome. It can be overwhelming for anyone to think about making huge changes, but the course teaches you that small changes can have a huge impact.”

“At UH, we want to empower people to take charge of their physical, mental, and spiritual health in order to live a full and meaningful life,” said Peter Pronovost, MD, PhD, Chief Quality and Clinical Transformation Officer at UH. “This training is designed to boost knowledge and skills that our employees can use to improve not only their own health, but the lives of their patients.”

This lifestyle medicine initiative is just one of the tools in UH’s journey to excellence in well-care – from illness prevention to chronic disease management, which will benefit individuals, families, and the community as a whole.

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About UH Connor Whole Health

UH Connor Whole Health is part of University Hospitals (UH), a comprehensive health system with annual revenues in excess of $5.0 billion, 23 hospitals (including 5 joint ventures), more than 50 health centers and outpatient facilities, and over 200 physician offices located throughout 16 counties. UH’s goal is to be the most trusted health care partner in Northeast Ohio and UH Connor Whole Health furthers this objective by working to strengthen relationships between patients and providers to improve outcomes. The Whole Health approach prioritizes compassionate care centered on the patient’s entire well-being. The health care provider’s goal is to equip and empower each patient to take charge of their physical, mental, and spiritual health in order to live a full and meaningful life. Linking the patient’s larger purpose and life goals to their lifestyle allows clinical services, integrative medicine, and well-being programs to be delivered in a way that increases collaboration, motivation, and adherence to self-care and clinical needs. UH Connor Whole Health services include acupuncture, art therapy, chiropractic, expressive therapy (art, dance, and music), guided imagery, integrative medicine/lifestyle medicine consultations (adult and pediatric), massage therapy, meditation, mindfulness, stress management and resilience training workshops and yoga. For more information, visit UH Hospitals.org/ConnorWholeHealth. Follow UH Connor Whole Health on LinkedIn.

About University Hospitals / Cleveland, Ohio Founded in 1866, University Hospitals serves the needs of patients through an integrated network of  21 hospitals (including 5 joint ventures), more than 50 health centers and outpatient facilities, and over 200 physician offices in 16 counties throughout northern Ohio. The system’s flagship quaternary care, academic medical center, University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, is affiliated with Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Northeast Ohio Medical University, Oxford University and the Technion Israel Institute of Technology. The main campus also includes the UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital, ranked among the top children’s hospitals in the nation; UH MacDonald Women’s Hospital, Ohio’s only hospital for women; and UH Seidman Cancer Center, part of the NCI-designated Case Comprehensive Cancer Center. UH is home to some of the most prestigious clinical and research programs in the nation, with more than 3,000 active clinical trials and research studies underway. UH Cleveland Medical Center is perennially among the highest performers in national ranking surveys, including “America’s Best Hospitals” from U.S. News & World Report. UH is also home to 19 Clinical Care Delivery and Research Institutes. UH is one of the largest employers in Northeast Ohio with more than 30,000 employees. Follow UH on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. For more information, visit UHhospitals.org.

About ACLM

The American College of Lifestyle Medicine is the nation’s medical professional society advancing lifestyle medicine as the foundation for a redesigned, value-based and equitable healthcare delivery system, leading to whole person health. ACLM educates, equips, empowers and supports its members through quality, evidence-based education, certification and research to identify and eradicate the root cause of chronic disease, with a clinical outcome goal of health restoration as opposed to disease management. www.lifestylemedicine.org