The fellowship equips physicians with advanced skills to deliver intensive lifestyle interventions, safely deprescribe medications when appropriate, and address the root causes of chronic disease while continuing to practice in their home communities.
In medical school, Nathan Holterman, MD, MPH, often wrestled with a question that went beyond diagnosis and treatment: Why do so many patients become sick in the first place?
“We talked a lot about pathology,” said Dr. Holterman, who recently completed his residency training. “But we were not getting down to the crux of what made people ill.”
For Stephen Merrell, MD, MPH, DipABLM, the motivation was deeply personal. After losing his father to complications related to chronic disease, the Utah family physician began searching for approaches that addressed the root causes of illness rather than simply managing symptoms.
Though their paths to lifestyle medicine were different, both physicians arrived at the same conclusion: Patients need clinicians who are equipped to help them make meaningful, lasting lifestyle behavior changes.
Now, they are among the first participants in the American College of Lifestyle Medicine’s new Virtual Lifestyle Medicine Intensivist Fellowship, a 12-month program designed to help physicians develop advanced skills in delivering intensive lifestyle interventions for patients with complex chronic disease. The fellowship allows clinicians to remain in their own communities and practices while gaining specialized training they can immediately apply in patient care.
“I’m excited because I really want to empower patients to realize that they have everything within their hands to take control of their health,” Dr. Holterman said. “All they might need is someone who is well-versed in the science, with the skills to motivate and encourage them.”
Dosing interventions and deprescribing medications
The fellowship is designed for physicians who already have a foundation in lifestyle medicine and want advanced training in caring for patients with complex chronic disease.
“The intensivist training equips physicians to understand how to dose lifestyle medicine,” said ACLM Medical Director of Education Brenda Rea, MD, DrPH, PT, RDN, DipABLM, FACLM, Lifestyle Medicine Intensivist. “It teaches our fellows how to safely deprescribe medications when appropriate, how to support intensive behavior change, and how to build the long-term infrastructure patients need for success.”
The virtual fellowship builds on the success of the in-person Lifestyle Medicine Intensivist Fellowship at Loma Linda University, combining mentorship, scholarly activity, clinical application and peer learning in a flexible “train-in-place” format.
“We’ve learned a great deal through our in-person fellowship experience,” Dr. Rea said. “The virtual model allows us to reach more physicians while helping them integrate lifestyle medicine directly into their own clinical settings from day one.”
An immersive lifestyle medicine experience
A cornerstone of the fellowship is a series of immersive experiences that give participants firsthand exposure to intensive lifestyle medicine interventions.
“Experiencing intensive therapeutic lifestyle interventions firsthand allows fellows to see how evidence-based programs can achieve meaningful improvements and even remission of chronic disease,” said Fellowship Program Director Andrew Mock, MD, MPH, FACLM, DipABLM, DipABLM, DipABLM, DipABOM. They leave with practical insights they can adapt to build programs that meet the needs of their own patients and communities.”
Fellows will participate in the McDougall Program, a 12-day virtual intensive lifestyle medicine experience that incorporates daily medical supervision, nutrition education, cooking demonstrations, exercise, group discussion and ongoing support.
McDougall Program CEO Heather McDougall said the program gives fellows the opportunity to experience lifestyle medicine as it is practiced in a real-world clinical setting. Rather than simply learning the science, fellows observe what happens when patients fully immerse themselves in a whole food, plant-based lifestyle and receive education, structure, encouragement and support.
Fellows become part of the clinical team and observe physician visits, educational lectures, cooking demonstrations, group discussions and exercise sessions. They also see participants begin applying new skills immediately.
“One of the most rewarding aspects is seeing measurable improvements in such a short period of time,” McDougall said. Many participants begin losing weight, lowering blood pressure, improving blood sugar control and reducing or eliminating medications under physician supervision.
“By the end of the program, fellows do not just understand the evidence,” McDougall said. “They have seen it, experienced it, and are better prepared to bring it into their own practices.”
The fellowship will include two in-person activities, including a visit to the Eden Valley Institute in Colorado, where ACLM Founding President John Kelly, MD, MPH, DipABLM, FACLM, Lifestyle Medicine Intensivist, serves as medical director, for an immersive experience focused on whole-person health and behavior change.
A workforce trained to deliver evidence-based lifestyle interventions
For Dr. Merrell, the fellowship represents an opportunity to build advanced skills without stepping away from the patients and community he has spent a decade serving.
After earning board certification in lifestyle medicine, he wanted more intensive training in helping patients implement sustainable behavior change and reduce their dependence on medications when appropriate. ACLM’s virtual fellowship allows him to gain those skills while continuing to practice full-time. He values the relationships he has built with patients through years of delivering babies, managing chronic illness and supporting families through difficult moments.
“The virtual aspect of this fellowship is so appealing because I’ve been in practice in my community for 10 years already,” he said. “My patients trust me.”
As lifestyle medicine continues to gain momentum across healthcare, the fellowship is an important step toward expanding the workforce of clinicians equipped to deliver intensive lifestyle medicine interventions.
“Ultimately, this fellowship is about becoming a more effective partner for patients,” Dr. Holterman said. “If I can help people recognize the power they have to improve their health and give them the tools and support to succeed, then I’ll consider that a big success.”
Who is eligible?
The vLMIF is designed for licensed physicians who are actively engaged in clinical practice and able to apply fellowship learning within a patient care setting.
Applicants must hold an active license to practice medicine and demonstrate a commitment to advancing the application of lifestyle medicine principles within their practice, organization, or community. Because the fellowship includes patient care and clinical implementation requirements, applicants must maintain an active clinical role throughout the program.
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