The Journey to Wellness Rx prescription is a non-pharmaceutical prescription that encourages physical activity and healthy living to help with weight and chronic disease management. Established in 2016, the Florida Department of Health in Miami-Dade County, Office of Community Health & Planning’s Journey to Wellness Rx initiative and community partner distribution program has distributed over 150,000 prescriptions. Please see below for an FAQ section with more information on the Journey to Wellness Rx, as well as downloads for the prescription itself and other materials.
Please click here to request Journey to Wellness Rx prescription pads.
JOURNEY TO WELLNESS RX GREEN PRESCRIPTION
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the purpose of the Journey to Wellness Rx green prescription policy? In its mission to becoming the healthiest state in the nation, the Florida Department of Health in Miami-Dade County (DOH-Miami-Dade) supports initiatives that promote the overall health and quality of life for all residents and visitors of Miami-Dade County. The Journey to Wellness Rx green prescription initiative uses a ‘prescription’ to promote healthy lifestyles including nutrition, physical activity, and tobacco prevention/cessation. The policy CHD13P-25-16 establishes the DOH-Miami-Dade’s goal and protocol of administration of the Journey to Wellness Rx green prescription.
Which clients should receive a Journey to Wellness Rx green prescription? The Journey to Wellness Rx green prescription is a non-pharmaceutical prescription that encourages physical activity and healthy living to help with weight and chronic disease management.
Designed for use with the general public, providers can administer a Journey to Wellness Rx green prescription to any client who is receiving a direct service. This would include clients encountered in a variety of settings (e.g., on-site clinical areas, mobile health care units, community health screenings, health fairs and other health promotion events). Special population clients, such as, children, pregnant and/or breastfeeding women, and older adults, may also be given a green prescription.
The Journey to Wellness Rx green prescription provides linkage to online resources (e.g., MyPlate.gov and CDC.gov) so that clients can access more specific instructions for their individual situation or age-group.
How is the Journey to Wellness Rx green prescription designed and in what languages is it available? The Journey to Wellness Rx green prescription is designed as a tear-off prescription pad, available in English, Spanish, and Haitian Creole.
Who is responsible for supplying the Journey to Wellness Rx green prescription pads to other programs/providers? The Office of Community Health and Planning is the main distributor of the Journey to Wellness Rx green prescription. Program/provider representative(s) should contact the Office of Community Health and Planning to order more materials, by calling 305-278-0442.
How does the distribution of Journey to Wellness Rx green prescription affect time spent with a client? Since the Journey to Wellness Rx green prescription combines information on physical activity, healthy eating, and tobacco prevention/cessation in a single educational handout, providers can save time, as well as materials. It only takes a few minutes to provide a green prescription and highlight its purpose.
If clients have additional questions, who can they contact? The back side of the Journey to Wellness Rx green prescription provides the contact information for the Office of Community Health and Planning. Also provided is the address of the Health & Wellness Center, located at the Frederica Wilson and Juanita Mann Health Center in Liberty City, for those clients interested in receiving free health screenings and additional education. Comprehensive screenings include nutrition and lifestyle assessment, Diabetes Risk Test Score, and biometric measures, such as, height, weight, body mass index (BMI), body fat analysis (BFA), blood pressure (BP), blood glucose (sugar), total blood cholesterol, and carbon monoxide (CO) breath test.
Clients are encouraged to consult their health care provider before beginning any exercise program. This is especially important for clients over the age of 35 and for those with any pre-existing health conditions. Clients should discontinue any exercise that causes pain, severe discomfort, nausea, dizziness or shortness of breath, and consult a medical expert immediately.