Becker’s Healthcare Podcast Advancing Lifestyle Medicine to Address Chronic Disease with Dr. Michelle McMacken
Mar 16, 2026
Dr. Michelle McMacken, a primary care physician and lifestyle medicine leader at NYC Health + Hospitals, explains scaling a systemwide program to prevent and improve chronic disease. She discusses interdisciplinary teams and group medical visits. She highlights culturally tailored counseling, community support, and measurable clinical outcomes.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Lifestyle Medicine Uses Six Pillars To Improve Chronic Disease
- Lifestyle medicine uses multiple pillars beyond diet and exercise to prevent and reverse chronic disease.
- Bellevue pilot combined nutrition, exercise, sleep, stress management, substance avoidance, and connectedness and showed strong demand and clinical signal.
Bellevue Pilot Sparked Citywide Expansion
- Pilot at Bellevue created huge patient demand with over 850 people on a waiting list.
- That demand and positive external evaluation led NYC Health + Hospitals to expand the program to seven sites across all five boroughs.
Start With A Team And Shared Medical Group Visits
- Build an interdisciplinary team and combine individual visits with group shared medical appointments.
- Include physicians, dietitians, health coaches, psychologists, community health workers, and fitness instructors to address clinical and social barriers.