INTERVIEW
Morgan’s patients organise and lead their own walking group
You need GPs with a strong work ethic. I’ve gone into
surgeries to promote exercise and frustratingly they put nurses in front of me, but the GPs say they’re too busy
of the patient, explaining the benefi ts on a one-to-one basis. “I personally think monies need to
be transferred from public health into general practices with an attitude like ours. But of course there’s the issue of evidence, perceptions and quantifying the impact of your intervention. If you prescribe an anti-hypertension drug, for example, it’s generally accepted that any resulting reduction in blood pressure will be down to the drug. But if you don’t prescribe a drug and prescribe exercise instead, did you actually do anything to reduce that person’s blood pressure, assuming it reduces? Or has the person done it themselves? “That’s always been the argument
in terms of where the funding goes. Personally I’m not bothered about the funding though. From my point of view, it’s the patient who’s in front of me at the time who matters.” He continues: “I also think you need
GPs with a strong work ethic. I’ve gone into various GP surgeries to teach and promote exercise, and frustratingly what
I’ve tended to fi nd is that they’ll put some nurses in front of me, but the GPs say they’re too busy. It can be a bit soul- destroying when you’re giving up your time to try and educate people.” I mention ukactive’s pilot scheme in
Essex, where exercise professionals were put into GP surgeries to act as an integrated part of the team. “Brilliant! That would be a fantastic model to roll out. But even if a full-time placement weren’t possible, health clubs could send instructors with behaviour change expertise into local GP surgeries to talk to GPs or even the patients themselves. “We already work quite a bit with our
local council facilities, but there’s no reason why private sector health clubs couldn’t get involved too. Maybe they could come to some agreement with the GPs to say they’ll charge half price for three months once people have fi nished their referral programmes. If they can give the GP some data – blood pressure before a three-month programme, blood pressure after, weight before and after – that could be a way forward.”
46 Read Health Club Management online at
healthclubmanagement.co.uk/digital
Exercise for all So what would Morgan’s overall advice be to other GPs? “Push exercise at every opportunity – not only to those who need exercise referral for a specifi c health condition, but to everyone. Push exercise whenever you have a patient in front of you, particularly if a mum comes in with an obese kid, because it starts with that age. “People need to see that exercise is
important. That means education of the individual patients, but the professionals also have to engage with that education in the fi rst place. I want to push the message far and wide that exercise acts on a cellular level in the body. It’s a natural treatment with huge benefi ts for your heart, lungs, mental health and so on. It combats stress too – something that causes the body to produce free radicals, which eventually cause cancer – by stimulating the body to produce antioxidants to quell free radicals. It’s not just in your head that you’ll feel better – it’s happening on a cellular level, and everyone can benefi t.” ●
November/December 2014 © Cybertrek 2014
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