The Health Improvement Program, more popularly referred to as HIP, began in 1983 at the Stanford Prevention Research Center (SPRC). The Center was a pioneer in developing effective methods of health education and health promotion, including those for community-wide application. The Center's founder John W. Farquhar, M.D. noted that these methods could be applied to help the employees of Stanford University improve their health, and with the aid of Stanford's Benefits office, HIP was created. Since then, HIP has provided and expanded these services, primarily to Stanford employees and their families, but also to retirees, and, to a lesser extent, to surrounding communities.

Since 1983, HIP has continued the mission of providing health promotion and preventive medicine solutions for Stanford and the community at large to create sustainable healthy lifestyle changes. HIP is a leader in health promotion, public health and preventive medicine and a beacon for the Stanford community.

Its purposes are to: