Walk with a Doc

Walk with a Doc inspires communities through movement and conversation with physican-led walking programs. With an aim to make hope and well-being accessible to all, Walk with a Doc offers a simple, sustainable population health solution. Healthcare providers ditch their white coats in favor of a ball cap and sneakers. There’s laughter, education, and communication on a level that is altering the healthcare landscape. Walk with a Doc was started in 2005 by Dr. David Sabgir, a cardiologist in Columbus, Ohio. Frustrated with his inability to effect behavior change in the clinical setting, Dr. Sabgir invited his patients to go for a walk with him in a local park on a spring Saturday morning. To his surprise, over 100 people showed up, energized and ready to move. Since that first event in 2005, Walk with a Doc has grown as a grassroots effort, with a model based on sustainability and simplicity. [A doctor gives a brief presentation on a health topic and then leads participants on a walk at their own pace. Healthy snacks, coffee, and blood pressure checks are also a standard part of a Walk with a Doc event.] The Walk added an Executive Director in 2009 and focused on building a program that could easily be implemented by interested doctors in other cities around the country. As a result of these efforts, the reach of Walk with a Doc now extends all around the globe with hundreds of chapters worldwide! Walking was recently recognized by the Surgeon General of the United States of America as one of the single most important things we can do for our health. Will you join us in making healthy physical activity accessible for all? Website: walkwithadoc.org Email: contact@walkwithadoc.org Phone: (614) 714-0407