About

A grassroots collaborative for a healthier Rhode Island

Together We Make Rhode Island Healthier, Happier and Socially Connected

Who We Are

RIHWC is a grassroots community health and wellness organization bringing together healthcare professionals, wellness practitioners, local farms, educators, businesses, community organizations, schools, and Rhode Island residents.

We bridge the gap between healthcare and the community by making evidence-based lifestyle and integrative medicine practical, accessible, enjoyable, and community-centered.

Dr. Saira Hussain leading a community wellness workshop from a small stage, with about thirty participants seated on colorful yoga mats in a bright hall

Dr. Saira Hussain with five fellow graduates of the Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine, holding wooden walking staffs in front of a branded backdrop

How RIHWC Began

Dr. Saira Hussain spent 25 years in conventional medicine in Rhode Island. Over those years a question kept returning: why was chronic disease still rising, even as people took more medication?

Then she received her own autoimmune diagnosis during a long stretch of chronic stress. It changed how she practiced. She completed the Andrew Weil Integrative Medicine Fellowship, became a Diplomate of the American Board of Lifestyle Medicine, and in 2024 began offering free community wellness workshops.

Those first small sessions became the Rhode Island Community Wellness Program, free, twice-monthly workshops that have grown into a community of roughly 80 regular members, and now into RIHWC.

Illness is often treated individually, but health is created collectively.

Why we call it a collaborative

No single person, profession, or organization can create a healthy community alone. A physician can write a plan. A farm can grow the food. A school can teach the habit. A neighbor can make sure you show up. It takes all of us.

Our mission

Shifting from treatment to prevention

To create a healthier, happier, and more socially connected Rhode Island, we bring healthcare, wellness, food, education, movement, and community together. We aim to shift the conversation from treating disease after it develops to prevention, health promotion, and addressing the root causes of chronic disease.

Our vision

We imagine a Rhode Island where…

Healthy food is accessible and celebrated.
Movement is part of everyday life.
Stress management and emotional well-being are treated as essential.
Sleep is recognized as medicine.
Social connection is intentionally cultivated.
Young people learn healthy habits early.
Healthcare professionals model healthy living.
Local farmers are partners in community health.
Healthcare systems and community organizations work together rather than in silos.

Our values

What we hold to

Inclusivity

Open to all. Every age, background, income and ability.

Connection

People first. Programs are built around being together.

Clinical Integrity

Evidence-based, taught by clinicians, free of hype.

Accessibility

Zero barriers. Most of what we do is free.

Our founders

The people who started this

Portrait of Dr. Saira Hussain, MD, smiling

Dr. Saira Hussain, MD, Founder

Integrative & Lifestyle Medicine • Community Wellness • Food Is Medicine

A primary care physician trained at Brown University with approximately 25 years as a hospitalist in Rhode Island. She completed the Andrew Weil Integrative Medicine Fellowship and is a Diplomate of the International Board of Lifestyle Medicine through the American Board of Lifestyle Medicine.

Her wellness work is centered on taking integrative and lifestyle medicine beyond the clinic and into communities, giving people practical, accessible tools to prevent disease, improve well-being, and take greater ownership of their health.

Selected wellness & community impact

Rhode Island Community Wellness Program. Free, twice-monthly community workshops from 2024 to present, building a community of roughly 80 members through health education, Food Is Medicine, plant-forward meals, Tai Chi, yoga, movement, breathwork, meditation, stress management, and social connection.
Health & Wellness Retreat: Plant Docs. Collaborated with Dr. Sandra Musial, Founder of Plant Docs, to organizeCollaborated with Dr. Sandra Musial to organize a half-day retreat for approximately 80 participants, combining Lifestyle Medicine and Food Is Medicine education with a plant-forward, whole-grain meal, yoga, Tai Chi, sound bath, breathwork, meditation, and aromatherapy.
Healing for Healers: Brown Health Hematology & Oncology. Collaborated on a five-session series of three-hour programs for physicians and healthcare professionals, integrating stress management, breathwork, Tai Chi, mindful movement, and Food Is Medicine.
School & Family Nutrition Pilot Project: Pakistan. A six-month initiative reaching approximately 200 children and 70 families: healthier school snacks, improved cafeteria food, 70 mothers trained to prepare affordable nutritious meals, and funds raised for fruit trees, backyard vegetable gardens, and chickens for fresh eggs.
Medical & university education. Delivered lectures on integrative and lifestyle medicine to Aga Khan University medical students and residents, Brown University students, and approximately 500 female students at Kinnaird College in Lahore, and supported students in developing preventive health initiatives.
Free health education online. A health and wellness platform reaching more than 8,000 followers with recipes and demonstrations, from nourishing broths, wellness shots, healthy meals and snacks, and natural personal-care staples, with an emphasis on affordable habits for everyday life.

"If you do not make time for your wellness, you will be forced to make time for your illness."

Portrait of Dr. Ehsun Mirza in a white henley shirt, looking thoughtfully to the side.

Dr. Ehsun Mirza, MD, Co-Founder

An intensivist and critical care physician, and a member of the American Board of Lifestyle Medicine. He speaks on why prevention matters, from the perspective of someone who cares for people at the sharpest end of chronic disease.

He is also an avid artist, photographer, and poet and holds a certificate as a Yoga Instructor from the Kripalu Institute.

Our team

Community Outreach

Bio coming soon.

Want to be on this page? Write to wellness@rihwc.org.