Prescribing Community: Healing Together with Open Source Wellness Leader, Dr. Elizabeth Markle

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June 8, 2025 • 54 mins

In a world where loneliness has become an epidemic and healthcare often feels impersonal, Dr. Elizabeth "Liz" Markle offers a revolutionary approach: prescribing community as medicine.

Dr. Elizabeth Markle, a licensed psychologist and co-founder of Open Source Wellness, challenges traditional healthcare approaches by introducing a revolutionary "Community As Medicine" model. She explores how social connection, movement, nutrition, and stress reduction can heal more than pharmaceuticals. Through Open Source Wellness, Liz has developed innovative group programs that prescribe community support, demonstrating significant improvements in participants' physical and mental health. Join us as she shares with us how community can be the most powerful medicine.

In this episode, we cover:

Benefits of Community-based peer support for Health
The Concept of a Behavioral Pharmacy
Shortcomings of the Healthcare System
Training and Implementation of Community as Medicine
Partnership with low-income Health clinics, YMCAs, and other Organizations to deliver the Community as Medicine Model
Choice of Individual Coaching
Formation of Groups and Group Accountability
Helping people who are suffering from loneliness
Creation of Open Source Wellness and collecting outcomes data
Need for Structural changes to support Social Connection and Well-being in Modern Society
Challenges and Future Directions
Forming Lifelong Connections and Support Networks that Created Sustainable Structures
How to join as a coach

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