Manitobans may soon find themselves spending more time in nature – doctor’s orders. On Tuesday, Assiniboine Park Conservancy announced its partnership with PaRx—a national, evidence-based nature prescription program. Through this initiative, patients who receive a PaRx prescription from a registered health-care provider will be eligible for 50 per cent off the purchase of an Inspire membership at Assiniboine Park. This includes unlimited visits to the park’s signature attractions and access to its green spaces, gardens, trails, programs and community events. “Nature has a lot of health benefits, you know, physical, mental, emotional, all those things,” said Jody Watson, senior director of programming and education with the Assiniboine Park Conservancy. “They’re starting to have more and more studies that are out there that, the more time you spend in nature, the better off it’s going to be.” Any licensed Canadian health-care provider can register to prescribe through PaRx and will receive a nature prescription file, provider code, and instructions on how to log nature prescriptions. Assiniboine Park Conservancy is the second zoological organization to join ParX and the first non-government attraction in the province.
