Wellness Tourism Wins Local Support

http://www.redorbit.com/news/health/761514/wellness_tourism_wins_local_support/index.html?source=r_health

By Levi J. Long and Joseph Barrios, The Arizona Daily Star, Tucson
Dec. 10--If the city, a pair of developers and Dr. Andrew Weil have their way, Tucson may be on its way to solidifying its leadership as an international destination for health and wellness.
Weil and the others have proposed to city officials building an education center dedicated to integrative medicine as a tourist attraction Downtown.
If such a center were built it would "position Tucson as a wellness center in the world," said Dr. Richard Carmona, the former U.S. surgeon general. "I couldn't be more enthusiastic."
Carmona himself is invested in the industry -- he was recently named vice president of Canyon Ranch, a Tucson-based wellness company with a resort on the Northeast Side. The other major local wellness center is Miraval Life in Balance Tucson Resort & Spa, in Catalina.
Those two are considered world leaders in wellness, placing Tucson in a leadership role in the industry, said Susie Ellis, president of New York-based Spa Finder Inc., which tracks travel and spa trends.
"I'm not sure people here realize that health tourism is a worldwide phenomenon and that Tucson is a world leader," said Weil, founder of the University of Arizona's world-renowned Program in Integrative Medicine.
Forms of integrative medicine, health and wellness around the world amount to a $400 billion industry, expected to mushroom to $1 trillion in the next decade, Carmona said.
"We're at the center of it," Weil said. "That's a huge asset the city can draw on. People want to learn about it and have access to it."
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Though nothing has been finalized with the city and specifics about the project are still being looked at, the concept for the center is in place, said Weil's business partner, Richard Baxter .
The center would serve as a worldwide post for information about integrative medicine, which combines mainstream and Western medicine with alternative remedies.
It would not, however, have any spa or hotel amenities and would not serve as a wellness clinic, Weil said.
Plans in the proposal for the center include interactive exhibits teaching visitors about integrative medicine and alternative therapies. It would have computers and access to online courses on nutrition and health, botanical and mind/body medicine.
A reference library would be built as well as an auditorium that would feature films, demonstrations and lectures.
A "healthy vacation planning center" would help visitors find restaurants offering healthy meals, fitness centers, medical services, alternative therapies and activities that promote wellness.
Outdoor attractions would include a garden of medicinal plants indigenous to the area and a labyrinth.
"Lifestyle assessments" from health professionals would offer referrals to doctors trained in integrative medicine.
"My vision is for the center to be a museum and education center to showcase integrative medicine," said Weil, a Harvard-educated physician who was once named among Time magazine's 100 most influential people in the world.
Christy Cessna, director of marketing and intake at Sierra Tucson, a behavior-health center near Catalina, said Weil's proposal would be useful to people who don't know where to turn for help with their health.
Many of the calls that come in to Sierra Tucson are from people who "really need help -- people are in crisis," Cessna said.
"I think it would be a wonderful resource for folks who are looking to explore alternatives to traditional medicines," she said. She noted that Sierra Tucson's Dr. Carolyn Coker Ross, head of the Integrative Therapies department for the addictions center, completed a fellowship with Weil.
Tucson is already a natural fit for health-conscious tourists and visitors who come for outdoor activities, terrain and weather conditions, said Kimberly Schmitz, spokeswoman for the Metropolitan Tucson Convention & Visitors Bureau.
If the center were built, it would create even more "notoriety" for Tucson as a wellness destination and would be an excellent addition and draw to our destination, she said.
Several factors may already favor Tucson.
Miraval Life in Balance, Tucson, a posh resort spread across 400 acres, is building a new Center for Life In Balance, to open on the property in 2008. Guests can head to that center for treatments developed by Weil, who serves as director of Miraval's integrative health and healing.
Kevin Kelly, president of Canyon Ranch, noted that Tucson is also home to its wellness programs.
"Tucson has tremendous outside recreational resources -- with lots of sunshine and a good climate," he said. "We have a real nucleus here and already have major stakes in the ground to define Tucson as a wellness destination city."