Driving forward the medicine of exercise: How a partnership between Athens and Sheffield became a family adventure

These are the words of Athens medical doctor Eirini Kyriakoulakou, whose passion to bring the benefits of physical activity to people across the globe became a family adventure when she spent three months working at Sheffield Hallam University’s world leading Advanced Wellbeing Research Centre (AWRC) – and brought her husband and two young daughters with her.

As the first researcher to take part in a new fellowship exchange programme funded by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) through its Global Health Initiative (GHI) and implemented through a newly established partnership between Yorkshire Cancer Research and the Greece-based nonprofit organisation, Regeneration & Progress (R&P), Eirini embraced the opportunity to spend time learning about Active Together, a pioneering programme that is helping hundreds of people with cancer in Yorkshire prepare for and recover from cancer by providing physical activity, nutritional and psychological support.

Designed by the AWRC and delivered by NHS Trusts across Yorkshire with funding from Yorkshire Cancer Research, Active Together was recently associated with a 10% increase in one-year survival rates. In addition, 97% of patients reported improvements in their health and wellbeing.

While learning more about the programme, the AWRC and the way healthcare and physical activity are linked within the UK – and sharing knowledge from her research at Regeneration & Progress (R&P) – Eirini balanced her work with visiting as many Sheffield parks as possible with her family.

“When I discovered the fellowship opportunity, my husband and I looked at each other and said, ‘let’s do it!’. And so, we embarked on our family adventure,” Eirini says. “Sheffield is such a green city, and I loved this aspect of my time here. We were lucky to enjoy some lovely autumnal weather. I noticed that in Sheffield, people are working hard to embed physical activity in their everyday lives. They are trying to improve access to physical activity and working to get the streets safer for people to walk or cycle to work.

Eirini was particularly struck by the empathetic care offered to patients taking part in the Active Together programme, with exercise specialists, physiotherapists, psychologists and dietitians all taking the time to listen to their patients and find out what matters most to them.

She also found that patients were grateful to be given the opportunity to “take control” following their diagnosis with cancer.

“When patients are told they have cancer, they feel they cannot control that; it’s out of their hands. Taking part in physical activity is something they can do, that will play an important role in the progress of their disease,” Eirini explains.

“They will be fitter and will tolerate their surgery or chemotherapy better, and then after that they can continue to be more active than they were before. ​​They are given the power to do something for their own health and for their treatment. That’s something I’ve learned during my time in Sheffield. It’s about giving people knowledge.”

Eirini holds a master’s degree in exercise and health and is completing specialist advanced training – known as a ‘residency’ - in physical medicine and rehabilitation. As part of her master’s degree, she explored the training medical students receive in relation to promoting physical activity to their patients.

In a national survey, she found that ​​almost half of medical students in Greece said they received less than two hours of training in physical activity promotion during their entire medical ​​course. Just a quarter mentioned they are aware of the current physical activity recommendations from the World Health Organization, which outline the amount of physical activity people of different ages should complete in order to lead healthier lives.

To discover the situation in Sheffield, Eirini held discussions with healthcare professionals and designed a similar questionnaire with the support of ​​​​healthcare students to assess their knowledge of physical activity, their confidence to talk about it with their patients and understand the education they receive during their training.

She hopes to distribute the questionnaire to the School of Health and Social Care at Sheffield Hallam University and then analyse and share her findings. She is also exploring how more training can be introduced into the curriculum.

“I’ve seen here in the UK that they are really working hard to embed physical activity into the NHS, and one of the most promising initiatives is the establishment of health and wellbeing coaches within the healthcare system,” Eirini says. “These roles are incredibly valuable because they go beyond traditional clinical care. Health coaches work closely with patients to build trust, provide tailored support, and empower them to make sustainable lifestyle changes.

“However, healthcare professionals need to be given the knowledge, skills and confidence to more effectively incorporate physical activity within their clinical care. There is still an urgent need to research and discover better ways to promote physical activity to our patients. In Greece, we can’t yet prescribe physical activity to our patients and when we find a way to do that it will be a huge asset for our healthcare system.”

Eirini hopes to leave a legacy at Sheffield Hallam by working with Emily Newton, who was her academic advisor during the fellowship and is a senior lecturer in physical activity, to make the university the UK’s first ​​“Exercise is Medicine” campus.

A global health initiative managed by the American College of Sports Medicine, Exercise is Medicine aims to make physical activity assessment and promotion a standard in clinical care.

“Eirini demonstrated our shared mission and passion for embedding physical activity into healthcare practice,” says Claire Woodward, Programmes and Planning Manager at Sheffield Hallam, who is leading the organisation of the fellowship exchange programme.

While Eirini has now returned to her role as a medical doctor in Athens, more fellows are expected to visit Sheffield during 2025. Fellows from the AWRC will also travel to Athens-based R&P, which leads initiatives funded by SNF, to exchange knowledge and expertise. They will join R&P’s Sports Excellence Lab team, operating under the medical auspices of the 1st Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Athens University Medical School, and gain hands-on experience of therapeutic exercise programmes designed to meet the individual needs of each patient, and of high-performance assessments for elite athletes. 

The fellowship exchange programme is funded by SNF as part of a £835,000 grant, which has also enabled the Active Together programme to be expanded and delivered at a dedicated centre in Harrogate.

Eirini adds: “Meaningful actions in research, society, and development are never achieved in isolation. Networking and collaboration are the driving forces behind impactful progress. It’s through interactions with others that the best and most transformative ideas are born. 

“My journey to Sheffield has filled my mind with ideas and possibilities and I’m looking forward to absorbing my learnings and focusing on what truly matters as I continue my journey of making a difference. To truly unlock the potential of physical activity, we must find innovative ways to integrate it into every aspect of life—healthcare systems, workplaces, transportation, and daily routines.” 

As for her family adventure, Eirini says the experience is one they will cherish forever.

 She says: “It wasn’t just my journey – it was ours, as a family. Over the years, balancing my roles as a mother, a medical doctor, and someone eager to learn and grow, I’ve realised that everything is possible, even with kids. Together, we tested ourselves in a new environment, embraced living in a new country, and gained priceless new experiences that brought us even closer.”