Coaching patients and clients to make successful and sustainable behavior changes is key to treating, preventing and even reversing lifestyle-related chronic diseases.

ST. LOUIS, Mo., March 28, 2023 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The American College of Lifestyle Medicine (ACLM) and the National Board for Health & Wellness Coaching (NBHWC) have announced a strategic collaboration to advance behavior change and health and wellness coaching skills among health care professionals and enhance the role for health and wellness coaches on health care teams. The collaboration will provide an avenue for advancing research, education, and awareness to further uncover the benefits of coaching skills within the lifestyle medicine paradigm.

NBHWC, an affiliate of the National Board of Medical Examiners, provides board certification for health and wellness coaches. National Board Certified Health & Wellness Coaches (NBC-HWC) train in behavior change theories, motivational strategies, and health education and promotion theories. NBC-HWCs support clients in creating and sustaining change for improved health and well-being.

NBC-HWCs commonly work on health care teams alongside physicians and other clinicians as part of an integrative approach to patient and client care. Other NBC-HWCs work in digital health, community-based programs, or entrepreneurial capacities. NBHWC has board certified more than 8,400 health and wellness coaches.

ACLM and NBHWC are natural partners as many of the lifestyle behaviors that health and wellness coaches frequently address with patients and clients relate to the six pillars of lifestyle medicine—a whole food, plant-predominant eating pattern, physical activity, restorative sleep, stress management, avoidance of risky substances and positive social connections. Lifestyle medicine is a medical specialty that uses therapeutic lifestyle interventions as a primary modality to treat chronic conditions including, but not limited to, cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes, and obesity.

"Evidence-based lifestyle behavior interventions are proven to treat, prevent and even reverse many chronic conditions, but simply telling a patient or client what lifestyle changes to make is not enough," said ACLM President and Harvard Medical School Clinical Assistant Professor Beth Frates, MD, FACLM, DipABLM, who also is a certified health coach. "Knowledge is important but, to achieve lasting behavior change, patients and clients also need coaching to motivate them and help them determine how to make and maintain lifestyle behavior changes to improve their health and wellbeing. ACLM is delighted to partner with the National Board for Health & Wellness Coaching to ensure that more clinicians develop health coaching skills, become board certified and bring awareness to the vital role of health coaches on care teams."

Like health and wellness coaching, the specialty of lifestyle medicine is experiencing rapid growth. Since certification began in 2017 by the American Board of Lifestyle Medicine (ABLM), 2,445 physicians in the U.S. have become board certified in lifestyle medicine, along with 946 other health professionals. Globally across 72 nations, 3,999 physicians are now certified as well as 1,255 other health professionals.

The White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health in September highlighted lifestyle medicine and ACLM for its commitment to offer complimentary CME/CE coursework on lifestyle and food as medicine to 100,000 physicians and other health professionals. In addition to this introductory course for all clinicians, ACLM also offers a variety of other coursework, including NBHWC-approved continuing education courses for board certified health coaches.

In addition to the strategic collaboration with ACLM, NBHWC has joined ACLM as a member of the Corporate Roundtable, a group of organizations and companies united in a shared commitment to address the burden of chronic disease through novel products and solutions focused on health care transformation.

"The NBHWC sees tremendous value in joining ACLM as a strategic collaborator and member of the Corporate Roundtable, as we wish to align with leaders who believe in the power of partnering with patients and clients to support healthy lifestyle choices," said NBHWC Executive Director Leigh-Ann Webster, NBC-HWC. "We believe that board certified health and wellness coaches play an integral role on the health care team, and we're thrilled to be a part of a movement that will lead to improved health and well-being for all."

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. http://www.lifestylemedicine.org

Media Contact

Alex Branch, American College of Lifestyle Medicine, 817-307-2399, abranch@lifestylemedicine.org

SOURCE American College of Lifestyle Medicine