The walk is prescribed as an official medical recommendation? This is already possible in four Canadian provinces - local doctors obtained the right to prescribe walks in the same way as drugs. Thanks to the prescription, patients receive free admission to national parks.
The program is called PaRx (pronounced parks, and Rx stands for prescription), and so far only doctors in Ontario, British Columbia, Manitoba and Saskatchewan can write an official prescription for walking. Ultimately, the program is to be extended to all of Canada. Its goal is to make the most of the possibilities of improving he alth offered by nature - walking and experiencing nature is one of the methods.
After issuing the prescription, the patient receives a code that he can use on PaRX websites and check with its help for how long he walks. Registered doctors can obtain free Canadian national park passes (one value is $ 72 Canadian), along with prescriptions, according to Parks Canada.
On the PaRX website you can also find an official recommendation to walk for at least two hours a week, for at least 20 minutes a day - after this time, the level of cortisol, the stress hormone, begins to drop.
The PaRX program was initially prepared by doctors in British Columbia in cooperation with the British Columbia Parks Foundation, a charitable foundation cooperating, among others, with national parks. At the beginning of the pandemic, it could be used by he althcare professionals. From this year on, it is also available to residents of four Canadian provinces.