REDONDO BEACH, Calif. (February 19, 2024) – Beach Cities Health District’s (BCHD) Center for Health & Fitness (CHF) has been re-certified as a medical fitness facility by the Medical Fitness Association, making CHF one of just two California organizations to achieve this designation and one of just 43 certified fitness centers worldwide.
Studies show that nearly 75 percent of hospital visits are preventable. Additionally, proper physical condition before surgical procedures can produce better clinical outcomes. To address these issues, CHF provides pre-habilitation workouts before knee and hip replacement surgeries and six-week medical exercise training for diabetes, hypertension, low back pain, and women’s fitness.
“As a preventive health agency, having a medically certified fitness facility is truly consistent with our mission,” says Tom Bakaly, CEO of BCHD. “This recertification represents our continued commitment to offering the highest standards of professional expertise and quality programming. CHF is here to help members develop and maintain a healthy lifestyle that minimizes the risk of illness and disease and promotes overall wellness.“
Located on the BCHD campus in Redondo Beach, CHF offers clinical fitness programming for people dealing with chronic health conditions, ranging from managing blood pressure to chronic pain. Personal training, small group training, Yoga, Pilates, massage, weight management and nutrition instruction are also offered at CHF.
“As the incidence of chronic disease continues to rise, the need for medical fitness facilities to offer a high standard of programming for the communities they serve is more important than ever,” said David Flench, FACHE, FMFA, President and CEO of the Medical Fitness Association. “Studies have shown that when people maintain an active lifestyle, especially in a safe environment, they reduce the risk of illness down the road.”
“The MFA recertification is the culmination of five years of work supporting the programs developed by the Center for Health & Fitness team, all designed to improve one's health and fitness,” said Dr. William Kim, Chief Medical Advisor for BCHD, who oversees the medical advisory committee for CHF. “By measuring outcomes and documenting the expected improvements with those programs, the MFA certifies that CHF provides medically-integrated health and fitness services to improve the health and functionality of our members in a safe and monitored environment.”
MFA-certified fitness facilities are located in 18 states, two provinces in Canada and in China.
Media Contact: Dan Smith, BCHD – (310) 374-3426, ext. 8156, Dan.Smith@bchd.org
