Program Coordinator Corner – April 2018
Maryann Dundon, Program Coordinator
Endocrinology, Diabetes & Metabolism Fellowship
Rheumatology Fellowship
Internal Medicine Residency
Highmark Wellness Ambassador
Phone: 412-359-8109
Email: Maryann.Dundon@ahn.org
The new “buzz word” in the GME community these days is WELLNESS. What is wellness exactly?
According to Dictonary.com, wellness is defined as:
- The quality or state of being healthy in body and mind, especially as the result of deliberate effort.
- An approach to healthcare that emphasizes preventing illness and prolonging life, as opposed to emphasizing treating diseases.
How does our institution promote wellness?
Resident health, wellness and well-being are essential principles in our programs. Work-life balance promotes an ideal environment for educational goals and professional development. Our institution developed a Resident Health and Well-Being policy that was assessed and approved by our Graduate Medical Education Committee. The policy identifies available resources for resident and faculty insight and education as well as resources for personal support. Programs must have either a Health & Wellness Officer or a Health and Well-Being/Wellness Committee.
Our GME office initiated a Resident Well-Being Series that kicked-off with a presentation by our Medical Director of Employee Health Services as well as an outside certified wellness coach. The presentation was given on three separate occasions to provide an opportunity for as many residents and fellows to attend. The presentations focused on stress management and self-care.
In our Endocrinology fellowship program, we began this academic year with an outing for fellows and faculty to take a one-hour Just Ducky tour of the downtown Pittsburgh area. The tour is conducted on a vehicle which is a bus as well as a boat! We toured the beautiful three rivers as well as most of the downtown area – all the while learning interesting facts! This was especially helpful to the fellows who were new to the city – but we locals learned a bunch of facts about our lovely city as well! Our spring wellness activity included a Pot Lunch get-together whereby faculty and fellows brought their famous dishes to share with the group. This provided us with such a variety of ethnic dishes which were all equally delicious. The lunch was followed by a session of reiki. Our hospital is fortunate to have skilled and knowledgeable reiki instructors in our volunteer office who enjoyed sharing the relaxation exercise with us.
This week the Department of Medicine fellowship programs (Endo, ID, Neph, GI, Pulm/CCM) put together a Spring Fling event for our fellows and faculty. This event was held during the lunchtime hour and it was a huge success! We provided food, fun and games as well as provided representatives from Dietary, our Employee Assistance Program, a financial advising group, and a local yoga studio. Our volunteer office provided a staff member and therapy dog as well. The fellows and faculty truly appreciated this “time out” from the normal routine and a great time was had by all. This will definitely be an annual event in our department.
Other training programs in our institution have initiated wellness activities/resources such as health coaches, holiday celebrations, wellness fairs, kayak and paddle-boarding outings, multidisciplinary “happy hour” events, pizza parties, picnics, community service activities, cultural arts outings, “family night” games, white water rafting, escape room sessions, debt management seminars, sporting event outings and yoga classes. Our health network has really embraced wellness and has provided so many opportunities for its employees. We have a very informative wellness link on our intranet which provides information on physical activity, nutrition/weight management, tobacco cessation, stress management, preventive care, as well as employee discounts.
Wellness is crucial to all residents, fellows, faculty and program coordinators and we must all work together to promote the community of wellbeing. We are truly doing this at the Allegheny Health Network!