“Time in Nature” joins the list of medications N.B. Doctors can prescribe
On Earth Day, a national program called PaRx was introduced to help physicians spend time in nature with patients who may need to be in nature for physical and mental health.
The program aims to encourage healthcare professionals to include outdoor activities as medicine for patients. Therefore, physicians can prescribe a prescription for their eligible patients that consists of a free one-year license to a Canadian park site.
“One of our main goals is to make [nature] a fourth pillar of health,” said Jacqueline Mincer a medical student at the University of Dalhousie on St. John’s Campus and coordinator of the PaRx launch in New Brunswick.
“I think as a society. We’re disconnected from nature and, you know, we’ve moved more towards screens and indoor spaces, and more work in terms of spending time outdoors. “We can do it,” Jacqueline Mincer said.
