What is Lifescripts

Lifestyle Prescriptions (or Lifescripts) aims to build on preventive activities being undertaken in the primary health care system. Lifescripts provides general practice with tools to assist patients to make healthier lifestyle choices.  Building on work undertaken on the SNAP lifestyle risk factors Lifescripts covers those risk factors (Smoking, Nutrition, Alcohol and Physical activity) and adds weight management as an additional risk factor. 

Lifescripts provides a framework for GPs, Practice Nurses and staff in the general practice setting to bring lifestyle risk factors to the fore in their engagement with patients.  Implementing Lifescripts 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.  To access an information sheet on Lifescripts click on this link.

Lifestyle Prescriptions is funded by the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing, more background information can be found on the Departments website.

Lifescripts utilises the SNAP framework developed by the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners as a platform, the SNAP Framework is available on the RACGP website.

In 2005 the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing commissioned the Divisions network to roll out the implementation of Lifescripts.  AGPN has received funding for a National Lifestyle Prescriptions Coordinator, and the Networks State Based Organisations have also received capacity to provide support to participating Divisions.  For further information on Lifescripts Implementation see Implementation section on this site.

In the 2007-2008 financial year, the Department of Health and Ageing is funding 10 Divisions to participate in the Lifescripts Demonstration Divisions project.  Divisions funded through the Demonstration Divisions project are implementing strategies with selected practices which assist them to incorporate Lifescripts and lifestyle risk factor managment into their activities.  For further information see the Lifescripts Demonstration Divisions page.

Divisional Case Studies

To see examples of how Divisions of General Practice are implementing Lifescripts, AGPN has developed a series of case studies that document a range of examples of implementation activities.  The case studies are available in the Lifescripts Resource Library.  To open the case studies change the category to 'Divisional Case Studies'. 

If you would like a case study of the work that your Division is doing to implement Lifescripts send an email to AGPNs Lifescripts Coordinator (see Contact for details) or call AGPN on (02) 6228 0800. 

AGPN acknowledges the financial support of the Australian Government Department of Health & Ageing