Skip to main content

Main menu

  • HOME
  • ONLINE FIRST
  • CURRENT ISSUE
  • ALL ISSUES
  • AUTHORS & REVIEWERS
  • SUBSCRIBE
  • RESOURCES
    • About BJGP
    • Conference
    • Advertising
    • BJGP Life
    • eLetters
    • Librarian information
    • Alerts
    • Resilience
    • Video
    • Audio
    • COVID-19 Clinical Solutions
  • RCGP
    • BJGP for RCGP members
    • BJGP Open
    • RCGP eLearning
    • InnovAIT Journal
    • Jobs and careers
    • RCGP e-Portfolio

User menu

  • Subscriptions
  • Alerts
  • Log in

Search

  • Advanced search
British Journal of General Practice
  • RCGP
    • BJGP for RCGP members
    • BJGP Open
    • RCGP eLearning
    • InnovAIT Journal
    • Jobs and careers
    • RCGP e-Portfolio
  • Subscriptions
  • Alerts
  • Log in
  • Follow bjgp on Twitter
  • Visit bjgp on Facebook
  • Blog
  • Listen to BJGP podcast
Advertisement
British Journal of General Practice

Advanced Search

  • HOME
  • ONLINE FIRST
  • CURRENT ISSUE
  • ALL ISSUES
  • AUTHORS & REVIEWERS
  • SUBSCRIBE
  • RESOURCES
    • About BJGP
    • Conference
    • Advertising
    • BJGP Life
    • eLetters
    • Librarian information
    • Alerts
    • Resilience
    • Video
    • Audio
    • COVID-19 Clinical Solutions
Life & Times

‘Cycling On Prescription’: a gear change or a wrong turn?

Heather Jones
British Journal of General Practice 2020; 70 (700): 547. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3399/bjgp20X713237
Heather Jones
Formerly Research Associate in the Centre for Transport & Society at the University of the West of England, Bristol. Email:
Roles: Primary Care Nurse
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • For correspondence: heather.jones46@nhs.net
  • Article
  • Info
  • eLetters
  • PDF
Loading

Published eLetters

eLetter submission guidelines

Submit a Response to This Article
Compose eLetter

More information about text formats

Plain text

  • No HTML tags allowed.
  • Web page addresses and e-mail addresses turn into links automatically.
  • Lines and paragraphs break automatically.
Author Information
First or given name, e.g. 'Peter'.
Your last, or family, name, e.g. 'MacMoody'.
Your email address, e.g. higgs-boson@gmail.com
Your role and/or occupation, e.g. 'Orthopedic Surgeon'.
Your organization or institution (if applicable), e.g. 'Royal Free Hospital'.
Statement of Competing Interests
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.

Vertical Tabs

Jump to comment:

  • Gear change: Supporting and encouraging cycling on prescription
    Timothy E. Yeo
    Published on: 02 December 2020
  • Published on: (2 December 2020)
    Gear change: Supporting and encouraging cycling on prescription
    • Timothy E. Yeo, 4th Year Medical Student, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry

    I read with great interest the paper written by Heather Jones, which presents the need of ‘cycling on prescription’ to begin within the walls of the NHS in order to influence and benefit the wider population.1

    As a fourth year medical student in London, I am continuously travelling to different hospitals and GP practices across the city, mainly by bicycle. Through my own experience, I must agree with Heather Jones that the provision of cycle amenities at many of these NHS sites is poor. This poor infrastructure, such as limited (if any) access to safe bicycle storage and onsite showers, frequently deters me from cycling to these locations. Evidence shows that lack of safe parking is a major barrier to both cyclists and non-cyclists, conversely, non-cyclists state they will feel more enabled to begin cycling if further allocation of bike racks were placed at health centres.2

    I am in agreement with Heather Jones that poor local cycling conditions may make clinicians wary to prescribe cycling. However, the ‘focused effort to promote cycling’ to NHS staff may fail to empower the wider population simply because it does not remedy the largest deterrent to cycling, which is fear of injury to oneself.2 One of the main themes of the UK Government’s Gear Change policy is to ‘enable and protect people when they cycle’.3 Proposed Gear Change infrastructure interventions incl...

    Show More

    I read with great interest the paper written by Heather Jones, which presents the need of ‘cycling on prescription’ to begin within the walls of the NHS in order to influence and benefit the wider population.1

    As a fourth year medical student in London, I am continuously travelling to different hospitals and GP practices across the city, mainly by bicycle. Through my own experience, I must agree with Heather Jones that the provision of cycle amenities at many of these NHS sites is poor. This poor infrastructure, such as limited (if any) access to safe bicycle storage and onsite showers, frequently deters me from cycling to these locations. Evidence shows that lack of safe parking is a major barrier to both cyclists and non-cyclists, conversely, non-cyclists state they will feel more enabled to begin cycling if further allocation of bike racks were placed at health centres.2

    I am in agreement with Heather Jones that poor local cycling conditions may make clinicians wary to prescribe cycling. However, the ‘focused effort to promote cycling’ to NHS staff may fail to empower the wider population simply because it does not remedy the largest deterrent to cycling, which is fear of injury to oneself.2 One of the main themes of the UK Government’s Gear Change policy is to ‘enable and protect people when they cycle’.3 Proposed Gear Change infrastructure interventions include the development of segregated cycle lanes, which have been proven to reduce the likelihood of cyclist injuries, whilst simultaneously producing a ‘safety in numbers’ phenomena.4 The Gear Change policy thus has the framework to remedy this large deterrent to cycling, thus hopefully increasing the adherence rate in those who are socially prescribed cycling.

    Whilst it can be argued that promoting NHS staff to cycle will increase local cycling conditions, Gear Change aims to improve cycling infrastructure and promote cycling to the UK population as a whole. Through further offers of patient cycle training to mediate patient risk, peer support groups, and loaning of cycles, cycling on prescription may be ushered in as a staple in social prescribing.

    References
    1. Jones H. “Cycling On Prescription”: a gear change or a wrong turn? Br J Gen Pract 2020; 1;70(700):547.
    2. Iwińska K, Blicharska M, Pierotti L, Tainio M, de Nazelle A. Cycling in Warsaw, Poland – Perceived enablers and barriers according to cyclists and non-cyclists. Transp Res Part A Policy Pract 2018; 1;113:291–301.
    3. Department for Transport. Gear Change A bold vision for cycling and walking [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2020 Dec 2]. Available from: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/904146/gear-change-a-bold-vision-for-cycling-and-walking.pdf 
    4. Bhatia D, Richmond SA, Loo CKJ, Rothman L, Macarthur C, Howard A. Examining the impact of cycle lanes on cyclist-motor vehicle collisions in the city of Toronto. J Transp Heal 2016; 1;3(4):523–8.

    Show Less
    Competing Interests: None declared.
Back to top
Previous ArticleNext Article

In this issue

British Journal of General Practice: 70 (700)
British Journal of General Practice
Vol. 70, Issue 700
November 2020
  • Table of Contents
  • Index by author
Download PDF
Article Alerts
Or,
sign in or create an account with your email address
Email Article

Thank you for recommending British Journal of General Practice.

NOTE: We only request your email address so that the person to whom you are recommending the page knows that you wanted them to see it, and that it is not junk mail. We do not capture any email address.

Enter multiple addresses on separate lines or separate them with commas.
‘Cycling On Prescription’: a gear change or a wrong turn?
(Your Name) has forwarded a page to you from British Journal of General Practice
(Your Name) thought you would like to see this page from British Journal of General Practice.
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
Citation Tools
‘Cycling On Prescription’: a gear change or a wrong turn?
Heather Jones
British Journal of General Practice 2020; 70 (700): 547. DOI: 10.3399/bjgp20X713237

Citation Manager Formats

  • BibTeX
  • Bookends
  • EasyBib
  • EndNote (tagged)
  • EndNote 8 (xml)
  • Medlars
  • Mendeley
  • Papers
  • RefWorks Tagged
  • Ref Manager
  • RIS
  • Zotero

Share
‘Cycling On Prescription’: a gear change or a wrong turn?
Heather Jones
British Journal of General Practice 2020; 70 (700): 547. DOI: 10.3399/bjgp20X713237
del.icio.us logo Digg logo Reddit logo Twitter logo CiteULike logo Facebook logo Google logo Mendeley logo
  • Tweet Widget
  • Facebook Like
  • Google Plus One
  • Mendeley logo Mendeley

Jump to section

  • Top
  • Article
    • ON YOUR BIKE
    • Footnotes
    • REFERENCES
  • Info
  • eLetters
  • PDF

More in this TOC Section

  • Ambivalent sexism within medicine: reflections from four medical students
  • Books: long read: The Doctor Who Fooled The World. Andrew Wakefield’s War On Vaccines
  • Lady Pereira Gray: an appreciation
Show more Life & Times

Related Articles

Cited By...

Advertisement

BJGP Life

BJGP Open

 

@BJGPjournal's Likes on Twitter

 
 

British Journal of General Practice

NAVIGATE

  • Home
  • Current Issue
  • All Issues
  • Online First
  • Authors & reviewers

RCGP

  • BJGP for RCGP members
  • BJGP Open
  • RCGP eLearning
  • InnovAiT Journal
  • Jobs and careers
  • RCGP e-Portfolio

MY ACCOUNT

  • RCGP members' login
  • Subscriber login
  • Activate subscription
  • Terms and conditions

NEWS AND UPDATES

  • About BJGP
  • Alerts
  • RSS feeds
  • Facebook
  • Twitter

AUTHORS & REVIEWERS

  • Submit an article
  • Writing for BJGP: research
  • Writing for BJGP: other sections
  • BJGP editorial process & policies
  • BJGP ethical guidelines
  • Peer review for BJGP

CUSTOMER SERVICES

  • Advertising
  • Contact subscription agent
  • Copyright
  • Librarian information

CONTRIBUTE

  • BJGP Life
  • eLetters
  • Feedback

CONTACT US

BJGP Journal Office
RCGP
30 Euston Square
London NW1 2FB
Tel: +44 (0)20 3188 7679
Email: journal@rcgp.org.uk

British Journal of General Practice is an editorially-independent publication of the Royal College of General Practitioners
© 2021 British Journal of General Practice

Print ISSN: 0960-1643
Online ISSN: 1478-5242