CrossFit LLC Introduces the CrossFit Medical Society to Help Build a Community for Doctors, Providers, Affiliates, and Members
CrossFit HQ is seeking to close the gap between CrossFit and healthcare professionals through a new organization called the CrossFit Medical Society (CFMS).
The organization is seeking to educate those in the healthcare profession about the efficacy of the CrossFit methodology, empowering affiliates and their members to manage their health more holistically.
CFMS will be a membership-based organization that will function independently but as a partner with CrossFit HQ.
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The Details
The new health organization will be headed up by Dr. Tom McCoy and Jennifer Pishko, owners of McCoy Medical, which is a “lifestyle-concepts approach” to healthcare.
CrossFit HQ tapped Dr. McCoy and Pishko to build a network of physicians and other healthcare providers who bring the CrossFit methodology into a traditional healthcare setting.
Doctors and other healthcare practitioners can join CFMS to network with one another, share educational materials, and continue to advance ways to introduce the “cure for the world’s most vexing problem, chronic disease.”
- “The overarching vision for all of us was to create a health ecosystem that could allow healthcare providers, both physicians and other disciplines, to have an avenue to connect with affiliate owners and coaches and CrossFitters where they could meet them in their health care journey,” McCoy told Morning Chalk Up in an interview.
Affiliate owners and members can join the CFMS for free, make use of the educational materials, share with others in their home communities, and connect with doctors and health practitioners who are also credentialed by CrossFit and are CrossFitters themselves.
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- This part of the idea comes from the shared experience of many CrossFitters going to see a primary care physician or healthcare provider who doesn’t fully understand the role fitness plays in their daily lives.
- Furthermore, the goal of CFMS is to educate the medical community about the impact of functional movement in a community setting with a sound nutrition strategy as well.
What Does this Mean for an Affiliate?
The goal of the CFMS for affiliate owners and coaches is to have the affiliate be a “true health home,” McCoy adds.
This involves educating owners and coaches on why CrossFit is an effective health intervention and connecting them with healthcare providers who may already be in their affiliate but aren’t sure of how to integrate the CrossFit methodology into their practice.
- Ideally, over time the goal is for the CFMS to create a curriculum for coaches and owners “to have them achieve a deeper understanding of the science and the data that supports us,” McCoy says.
What Does This Mean for the Everyday CrossFitter?
Crossfitters can join the CFMS for free and gain access to the healthcare provider directory.
They can search for medical providers in their communities or through telehealth, such as orthopedic surgeons, OBGYNs, reproductive endocrinologists, and more.
- “Through that, hopefully, you get exposure to ongoing education, access to events, etc. and that’s really the value proposition for the CrossFitter, for the affiliate owner and for the coach,” McCoy said.
In comments to the Morning Chalk Up, Nicole Carroll, CrossFit’s Chief Brand Officer, described how the CFMS and this new partnership fit within the larger vision of the CrossFit brand.
- “CrossFit’s mission is to make the world healthier. Our methodology and community are exceptionally effective in creating fitness and improving health,” Carroll said. “On top of that, CrossFit Affiliates are, collectively, the largest ‘boots on the ground’ force in existence today with the experience, capacity, and conviction to effectively intervene in the lives of millions suffering from chronic disease.”
“Thanks to the work started in 2017 with CrossFit Health,” she noted, “we have been cultivating a cohort of medical professionals who understand the potency of CrossFit in preventing and reversing chronic disease.”
- “The CrossFit Medical Society is the next step in formalizing a more direct relationship between our affiliates, coaches, and doctors. By joining forces like this, we increase our shared ability to effectively serve our communities and carry out our mission.”
Credit: @mccoymedical / Instagram