Faculty mentor/PI email address
collinsp@rowan.edu
Keywords
Lifestyle, Nutrition, Family Medicine, Nutrition, Exercise, Wellness
IRB or IACUC Protocol Number
G25050
Date of Presentation
5-6-2026 12:00 AM
Poster Abstract
Chronic diseases are the leading cause of death and disability in the United States and are largely driven by modifiable lifestyle factors. Lifestyle Medicine (LM) is an evidence-based medical specialty that uses therapeutic lifestyle interventions—including nutrition, physical activity, stress management, sleep, substance use reduction, and healthy relationships—to prevent, treat, and reverse many chronic conditions. Despite strong evidence supporting lifestyle interventions, LM use in routine primary care remains inconsistent due to barriers such as limited visit time, inadequate clinician training, lack of reimbursement, and difficulty sustaining behavioral change. This study evaluates how often lifestyle counseling is discussed in South Jersey primary care settings by comparing physician-reported prescribing practices with patient-reported experiences to identify gaps in LM implementation. We hypothesized that there would be a discrepancy between how often physicians report recommending lifestyle modifications and how often patients report receiving them. We also expected physicians to identify patient non-compliance as the primary barrier, while patients would identify difficulty changing habits as their main barrier. Physician and patient surveys were created in Qualtrics and distributed across multiple Rowan Family Medicine offices in South Jersey. Responses on lifestyle counseling frequency were collapsed into two categories (Often/Always = Yes; Sometimes/Rarely = No), and a Chi-square test was used to determine statistically significant differences between physician-reported and patient-reported frequencies of discussing lifestyle factors. The hypothesis was supported, as a discrepancy was seen between how often physicians report recommending lifestyle modifications and how often patients report receiving them. Physicians identified patient non-compliance as the primary barrier, while patients identified difficulty changing habits as their main barrier. These findings suggest inaccurate perceptions by physicians or patients regarding lifestyle counseling frequency and highlight patient compliance as a major barrier in integrating LM into primary care. Limitations include small physician sample size and variability in response rates. Future studies can evaluate strategies to improve communication of lifestyle recommendations and patient compliance, including patient handouts and templated prompts.
Disciplines
Medicine and Health Sciences
Included in
A Survey-Based Analysis of the Use of Lifestyle Medicine in Clinical Practices of South Jersey
Chronic diseases are the leading cause of death and disability in the United States and are largely driven by modifiable lifestyle factors. Lifestyle Medicine (LM) is an evidence-based medical specialty that uses therapeutic lifestyle interventions—including nutrition, physical activity, stress management, sleep, substance use reduction, and healthy relationships—to prevent, treat, and reverse many chronic conditions. Despite strong evidence supporting lifestyle interventions, LM use in routine primary care remains inconsistent due to barriers such as limited visit time, inadequate clinician training, lack of reimbursement, and difficulty sustaining behavioral change. This study evaluates how often lifestyle counseling is discussed in South Jersey primary care settings by comparing physician-reported prescribing practices with patient-reported experiences to identify gaps in LM implementation. We hypothesized that there would be a discrepancy between how often physicians report recommending lifestyle modifications and how often patients report receiving them. We also expected physicians to identify patient non-compliance as the primary barrier, while patients would identify difficulty changing habits as their main barrier. Physician and patient surveys were created in Qualtrics and distributed across multiple Rowan Family Medicine offices in South Jersey. Responses on lifestyle counseling frequency were collapsed into two categories (Often/Always = Yes; Sometimes/Rarely = No), and a Chi-square test was used to determine statistically significant differences between physician-reported and patient-reported frequencies of discussing lifestyle factors. The hypothesis was supported, as a discrepancy was seen between how often physicians report recommending lifestyle modifications and how often patients report receiving them. Physicians identified patient non-compliance as the primary barrier, while patients identified difficulty changing habits as their main barrier. These findings suggest inaccurate perceptions by physicians or patients regarding lifestyle counseling frequency and highlight patient compliance as a major barrier in integrating LM into primary care. Limitations include small physician sample size and variability in response rates. Future studies can evaluate strategies to improve communication of lifestyle recommendations and patient compliance, including patient handouts and templated prompts.