Implementation science of Yoga: an integrated approach to health and wellness

Vinod Srivastava, Swati Kumari Choudhary, J. M. Balamurugan, H. R. Nagendra, Mitali Mukerji, Kalyan Maity, Monika Gautam, Rajvi Mehta, Hemant Bhagat, Anumeha Bhagat, Rima Dada, Hemant Bhargav, N. K. Manjunath, Richard R. Fletcher, Alyssa Wostrel, Molly McManus, Susan Tebb, Om Prakash Katare, Saurabh Kumar, Sanjib Patra, Kashinath Metri, Vikram Pai, H. S. Vadiraja, Aruna Raka, Krishan Kumar, Pramod Avti, Rakesh Mittal, Neelam Dahiya, Gurmeet Singh, Sumeet Mahajan, Raghavendra M. Rao, Akshay Anand

This article is a structured narrative review that synthesizes empirical findings and expert consensus and provides policy guidance to outline implementation pathways for integrating Yoga into mainstream healthcare systems, with India as a case example. Yoga is an ancient health practice traditionally used as a holistic approach to health management and wellbeing. However, the acceptance of Yoga as an evidence-based practice in the modern healthcare delivery requires systematic reassessment for its implementation within the healthcare system to make healthcare more affordable, improve prevention, rehabilitation, and resilience thus reduce strain on medical resources. In this review, we have organized the literature review and practical insights around three core themes: stakeholder configurations and governance, economic and quality management, and implementation strategies and evaluation to develop an actionable framework for an optimal care system responsive to patients' needs and adaptable to different community settings. This article has incorporated peer-reviewed studies on the effectiveness of Yoga, its implementation in mainstream healthcare, along with relevant publicly available policy, accreditation, and practice standard sources, to emphasize constructs of implementation science and evidence-based practice. The review identifies a know-do gap between growing evidence for Yoga and its system-level adoption, proposing a staged framework that integrates stakeholder engagement, economic evaluation, quality management, and monitoring to support evidence-based implementation. We propose a comprehensive, context-sensitive model that combines traditional wisdom with contemporary behavioral, clinical, and systems-based approaches. By embedding Yoga within an implementation science framework, we advocate for its role as a mainstream, evidence-informed system. Adoption of Yoga as a therapeutic and preventive modality can be accelerated through standardized protocols, transparent evaluation and regulation, and tripartite governance among state actors, healthcare institutions, and Yoga professionals; however, the feasibility hinges on context-sensitive financial support, stakeholder management, and workforce development.