From innovation to practice: initiation, implementation and evaluation of a physician-based physical activity promotion programme in Finland

SUMMARY In 2001, a collaborative Physical Activity Prescription Programme (PAPP) was started in Finland to increase physical activity (PA) counselling among physicians, especially in primary care. This article describes the initiation, implementation and evaluation of PAPP. Five actions were implemented to reach the programme goal: (i) developing a counselling approach for physicians; (ii) providing easy and open access to counselling