One Montgomery County Hospital has decided to break from strictly focusing on medicine by building a half-acre organic farm to provide fresh produce for its patients to help them deal with obesity, writes Liza Bayless for Yes! Magazine.

Lankenau Medical Center in Wynnewood might geographically be in one of the healthiest counties in the state, but many of its patients come from Philadelphia County, the least healthy county in the commonwealth according to recent surveys.

This has made Lankenau look at new ways to address health needs and has prompted it to provide its patients with a healthier source of food. To do this Lankenau has paired with Greener Partners, to build and maintain its Deaver Wellness Farm.

Since last year, the farm has provided more than 4,000 pounds of organic food for hospital patients at no cost. The produce is used as part of educational demonstrations and is also served in the hospital cafeteria.

Medical assistants now bring in freshly grown organic produce for patients while they are waiting for their appointments. The hospital then provides recipes, while physicians use the produce during appointments to show how they can make healthier food and lifestyle choices.

Read more about this novel approach at Yes! Magazine by clicking here.