Dr. Beth Frates
Beth Frates, MD is a trained physiatrist and a health and wellness coach, with expertise in Lifestyle Medicine. She has received several teaching accolades from Harvard Extension School and Harvard Medical School, where she is an associate clinical professor. Dr. Frates is one of the first Fellows of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine and a pioneer in lifestyle medicine. In 2008, Dr. Frates created the first Lifestyle Medicine Interest Group at Harvard Medical School. In 2014, she developed and taught a college Lifestyle Medicine curriculum at the Harvard Extension School, and it is still one of the most well-received courses offered at the school. In 2017, Dr. Frates was selected to be one of four item writers for the American Board of Lifestyle Medicine’s inaugural exam for certification in this specialty. She was voted president of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine in August 2020. Dr. Frates serves as President until November 2024.
She authored a Lifestyle Medicine syllabus, which can be downloaded through the ACLM website, to serve as a template for other instructors and professors. In addition, Dr. Frates co-authored The Lifestyle Medicine Handbook: An Introduction to the Power of Healthy Habits, which was ranked in the top 20 by Book Authority for medical books released in 2018. To accompany the syllabus and handbook, she also co-created Lifestyle Medicine 101, a full college curriculum with 12 weeks of PowerPoints and a teacher’s manual, which is free and accessible through the ACLM website. In addition, Dr. Frates co-authored The Teen Lifestyle Medicine Handbook, published in October 2020 which when paired with the Teen Curriculum consisting of a Teacher’s Manual and 12 PowerPoint decks can be used to teach and empower middle-school and high school students to adopt and sustain healthy habits. In September of 2023, Dr. Frates co-authored The Lifestyle Medicine Pocket Guide.
While serving as Director of Wellness Programming at the Stroke Institute for Research and Recovery at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, a Harvard Medical School affiliate, Dr. Frates has created and implemented a 12-Step wellness program, PAVING the Path to Wellness™ for patients and providers. Most recently, she co-authored the book PAVING the Path to Wellness Workbook: A Guide to Thriving with a Healthy Body, Peaceful Mind and Joyful Heart. As of the fall of 2020, Dr. Frates serves as the Director of Lifestyle Medicine and Wellness for the Department of Surgery at Mass General Hospital. In addition, Dr. Frates has her own Lifestyle Medicine consulting/coaching practice where she sees patients 1:1 and in groups.
