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Extensive research has shown that being in nature for as little as 20 minutes per day can reduce anxiety, lower blood pressure, strengthen the immune system, and improve self-esteem and mood. Time in nature is particularly beneficial to people living with chronic conditions, including hypertension, diabetes, cancer, depression, and anxiety.
The Nature as Medicine program aims to help everyone harness the healing power of nature through:
Nature Prescriptions: The Only Nature Rx Program in the RegionUC Health is the only health system in the area prescribing time in nature as a scientifically backed intervention to improve physical and mental health. Patients receive personalized recommendations on how to integrate nature into their daily lives for better well-being.
Exclusive Partnership with a Top 10 National Park SystemOur Cincinnati Parks & Rec for Wellness collaboration with the Cincinnati Parks and Cincinnati Parks Foundation, one of the nation’s top-ranked park systems, provides patients with access to high-quality green spaces for healing and provided no-cost, structured outdoor wellness programs, guided activities, and movement therapies in the best natural settings available.
1. Patient ReferralProviders place a Nature Rx referral in Epic: Integrative Medicine Referral Panel -> Nature Rx
2. Patient CommunicationsIntegrative medicine reaches out to the patient via phone and MyChart. Anyone can join the Nature as Medicine email newsletter.
3. Patient ResourcesPatients are offered resources, including nature prescription guidance, monthly meetups, Cincinnati Parks programming, and weekly nature walks in Burnet Woods
4. Patient Follow-UpPatients are encouraged to attend monthly meetup to stay connected and can schedule a one-on-one meeting with Nature as Medicine representative
Refer Your PatientsSimply write the order in EPIC for the Nature as Medicine program, and we take it from there! When possible, discuss the program with your patients and why it would benefit them specifically.
Spread the WordWe will keep you updated with regular email communications (no more than once a month) about upcoming opportunities and programs. Help spread the word any way you can: email, MyChart, word of mouth, social media, and attending events as you are available.
Be a ChampionYou are a natural fit for this initiative. As a long-time supporter of health and wellness, who embraces the restorative aspects of nature, you truly embody the spirit of our program. Continue to embody the principles of nature as medicine by inspiring your patients and colleagues to enjoy the great outdoors!
Join our Email Newsletter for Upcoming Events & Evidence-Based Health Tips
Read more: UC News: The Healing Power of Nature
Through a new Cincinnati Parks & Rec for Wellness collaboration, the Osher Center, the Cincinnati Parks Foundation, the Cincinnati Parks, and the Cincinnati Recreation Commission, are on a mission to provide Cincinnatians with opportunities to harness the healing power of nature by providing innovative, evidence-based care and a deeper connection to our local natural world and the communities in which we live and work. The collaboration will provide health and wellness education as well as movement and mindfulness therapies in the parks, providing opportunities for social connection, and healing.
View our Mindfulness in Nature Video Series.
There are 6 Official Pillars of Lifestyle Medicine, and now mounting evidence supports Nature As Medicine as The 7th (Unofficial) Pillar of Lifestyle Medicine.
The Osher Center offers lifestyle medicine consultations, covered by insurance like any other visit with your provider, you will initially meet with your physician or nurse practitioner for one hour. They will learn about your personal, medical and family history; your dietary, exercise and sleep habits; your sources of stress and coping mechanisms, and then will assess your health concerns and evaluate your symptoms, order any necessary tests and create mutually agreed upon lifestyle prescriptions.
Our goal is to work with you to create a personalized self-care plan that you can implement and sustain with your lifestyle. To schedule a consultation, call 513-475-9567.
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Barbara Walker, Ph.D.
Integrative Health and Performance PsychologistProfessor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, College of MedicineDirector, Nature as Medicine ProgramAffiliated Faculty, Osher Center for Integrative Health Diplomate, American College of Lifestyle Medicine
Dr. Walker currently serves as an Integrative Health and Performance Psychologist within the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine and UC Health, where she provides consultations to a wide variety of patients to facilitate their optimal effectiveness, whether for performance in sport or within their career, coping with illness or injury, and/or a desire to improve areas associated with lifestyle for overall health and well-being. She specializes in the use of biofeedback, mind-body techniques, high performance strategies, and lifestyle medicine as tools for teaching self-regulation. Barbara also teaches Sport and Positive Psychology as an associate adjunct professor in the Psychology Department, as well as Nature-Based Therapies and Ecopsychology, and co-teaches The Science and Practice of Mind-Body Medicine within the College of Medicine at the University of Cincinnati.
Dr. Walker earned her master’s degree in health psychology, her doctorate in clinical psychology with an emphasis in exercise and sport psychology and is a licensed clinical psychologist. Barbara has consulted with multiple professional and university athletic teams and individuals, Fortune 100 and 500 companies and their executives, physicians, and first responders. Barbara is a regular presenter at local and national professional conferences and workshops, has authored multiple chapters in professional texts, and is a regular contributor to national periodicals. She has appeared as a guest expert on multiple radio and television programs. She currently serves on the board of directors for the Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathon. She is a member of the American Psychological Association, the Association of Applied Sport Psychology, the American College of Lifestyle Medicine, as well as a member of the sport psychology registry with the United States Olympic Committee. Barbara demonstrates a lifelong passion for peak performance principles applying them in her own professional and personal life as a former competitive athlete in the sports of marathon, triathlon, duathlon, and cycling. She now mindfully trains for life- currently cycling, hiking, practicing yoga, organic gardening and spending time with family, friends, being outside as much as she can!
Mladen Golubic, MD, PhD, has worked in the fields of immunogenetics and molecular and cancer biology, contributing to the understanding of interactions between the environment and our genes. His clinical work focuses now on lifestyle-related chronic diseases.
As an internist, Dr. Golubic has practiced and directed educational and research activities within integrative and lifestyle medicine since 2009 with a group of exceptional lifestyle medicine professionals (dietitians, chefs, yoga instructors, exercise physiologists, meditation teachers, etc.) within the Wellness Institute at the Cleveland Clinic.
Outside of the health system, he enjoys time with his family and spending time outdoors.
Sian Cotton, PHD
Director, Osher Center for Integrative Health | Professor, Department of Family & Community Medicine, UC College of Medicine
Dr. Cotton is a licensed clinical psychologist and founding director of the UC Center for Integrative Health and Wellness and UC Health Integrative Medicine. A Professor in the Departments of Family and Community Medicine and Pediatrics, Dr. Cotton has an active research lab with ongoing clinical studies focusing primarily on mindfulness-based interventions and integrative medicine practice-based research. In 2007, Dr. Cotton was awarded a K23 career development award by the National Institutes of Health to examine the role of spiritual coping and health-related quality of life in adolescents with a chronic illness. A former Board member for the Academic Consortium of Integrative Medicine and Health, she is often invited to speak with community organizations and businesses, healthcare audiences, and academics about mind-body medicine for stress reduction, and preventive and wellness-based approaches to healthcare.
Kelly Lyle, MHA, MS | Director of Education, Osher Center for Integrative Health, College of Medicine
Kelly has a Master of Health Administration and a Master of Science in Health Promotion and Education degrees from UC. She is a certified yoga instructor, ACE Certified Health Coach and an INFTA Certified Forest Therapy Guide.
Medical Sciences Building Suite 4358231 Albert Sabin WayPO Box 670582 Cincinnati, OH 45267-0582
Mail Location: 0582Phone: 513-558-2310Fax: 513-558-3266Email: osher.integrative@uc.edu