Fremantle GP Network

Lifescripts

What is Lifescripts?
Lifescripts (or Lifestyle Prescriptions) provides General Practice with the tools to implement a preventative health initiative that helps patients to make healthier lifestyle choices.

Lifescripts focuses on five lifestyle risk factor areas:

  1. Smoking
  2. Nutrition
  3. Alcohol
  4. Physical Activity
  5. Weight Management

Lifescript Resources
The resources developed to implement Lifescripts include:

  • Waiting room materials - checklist, flyer and posters
  • Assessment guidelines
  • Prescription pads for all five risk factor areas
  • Medical record summary stickers
  • Practice manual
  • CD Rom (includes motivational interviewing component)

Ordering Resources
If you are interested in obtaining a hard copy of these resources please contact Fremantle GP Network (9319 0555) or email Jesse Pearse and we can arrange a time to come out to your practice and explain them to you.

These resources are available as both hard copies and as electronic Medical Director templates. To download the electronic templates please follow the instructions below:

Instructions to download a Medical Director template

Lifescripts Medical Director Templates:

Alcohol Assessment

Alcohol Prescription

Nutrition Assessment

Nutrition Prescription

Physical Activity Assessment

Physical Activity Prescription

Smoking Assessment

Smoking Prescription

Weight Management Assessment

Weight Management Prescription

To complement these resources Fremantle GP Network has developed a Healthy Lifestyle database to provide you with information on local programs, services and resources for each of the Lifescripts areas.  Additionally a guide to physical activity programs and services in the local area is available.

Cockburn Physical Activity Opportunities

Fremantle Physical Activity Opportunities

Melville Physical Activity Opportunities

Implementing Lifescripts
Lifescripts provide a framework for GPs, Practice Nurses, and staff in the General Practice setting to bring these lifestyle risk factors up when consulting with patients.  The resources provide an avenue for the GP or Practice Nurse to provide a 'prescription' for the patient that helps them to implement a healthy lifestyle plan and refers them to the appropriate health professional or service.

Implementing Lifescripts resources with a patient involves: discussing risk factors with patients, setting lifestyle change goals, providing written lifestyle prescriptions, organising ongoing review of lifestyle risk factors, and referring patients to other services that support healthy lifestyle choices.

Each practice can choose a level of implementation that is most appropriate to their risk factor management plan.  The GP can incorporate the tools into a patient visit and take as little as two minutes or a more comprehensive lifestyle risk factor plan can be discussed perhaps by the Practice Nurse.