I have long been a proponent of health behavior change as being a cornerstone of reducing health costs (along with eliminating waste and redundancy in the system!).

But it is a bit like trying to sell "green" in business.

Until very recently, it didn't seem that there was much profit in building a business that focused on creating "green" products and services. That all seems to have changed now - "green" is hip and hot and in --- and apparently profitable!

So what about health behavior change and disease prevention?

In an article today from HealthLeaders Media, called "The Other 'Behavioral Medicine'", author Scott MacStravic discusses the Big Four:

The four biggest behavioral problems in the population seem to be:

• dietary habits
• exercise/activity habits
• stress/time management habits
• self-care/management habits

If any one of these four sets of habits can be transformed from risks to benefits, the effects on the incidence and prevalence of disease could be dramatic. And for employers, the effects of such transformation are likely to be far more valuable than managing any single disease or injury.

So where do physicians, with their training and knowledge of health and disease, fit into this picture of transforming the habits from risks to benefits?

If, as the author argues:

Physicians tend to be the most expensive source for any proactive health role that is needed, commanding double or more what nurses require in compensation, for example. And since few are educated or trained as coaches, it is usually more practical to rely on nurses, nutritionists, fitness trainers, behavior change counselors, etc., than on physicians for most elements of the behavioral medicine intervention.

......then physicians who are passionate about health behavior change need to think carefully about their roles.

Physicians are highly credible and influential in the eyes of most patients, and can command the respect needed to alter patients' behavior. How then can they leverage that respect?

As a physician in practice, can you organize, supervise and promote a small team of health educators (nurses, dietitians, trained health coaches) to create a "wellness" service that offers anything from low priced workbooks, to medium-priced self-coaching programs with monthly "check-in" calls, to individualized one-to-one counseling and coaching packages? What would your business model and business plan for this service line look like?

How about developing an online and telephone coaching service delivered by lower-priced personnel that you personally train and oversee? You could think of ways to "productize" your knowledge and power of persuasion and sell that in the form of information products (e-books, workbooks with audio recordings, daily or weekly email tips, newsletters, video clips for visual impact).

I believe that the burgeoning healthcare costs and impending crisis will force healthcare providers and health insurers to re-evaluate how much emphasis should be placed on rewarding those physicians who choose to play an active role in promoting health behavior.

If health behavior change is your area of interest, get prepared with your unique message and your service line or products, in order to take advantage of the "Healthy Habit" wave once it hits. I suspect it will be a tsunami, when we as a society and business community finally get that investing in wellness pays.

Just look at the greenies we once snickered at!