Wellness

The Internal Medicine Residency Program is committed to promoting the holistic well-being of its residents and actively strives to support resident families to foster a feeling of community and connection within the program.         

            

Opt-Out Well-Being Coaching Program

The Well-Being Coaching Program was created out of a desire to diminish barriers to mental health resources for residents. We know that residents in general are at noticeably increased risk of mental health disorders and can be exposed regularly to distressing and traumatizing events through their work. This program provides our residents with a safe and protected space to meet with a licensed counselor in the Office of Counseling and Workplace Resilience (OCWR). During this meeting, they will complete an assessment of their mental health, discuss strategies for wellness, and ultimately be easily transitioned into future psychological or psychiatric treatment if deemed appropriate. Currently, each incoming intern has one session built into their schedule, which will continue into their senior years. Preliminary data has already shown that these sessions are perceived as beneficial.

Wellness Curriculum and Committee

The Wellness Curriculum is a series of conferences for interns that address the art of medicine, humanities, and other topics not covered in the traditional Intern Boot Camp curriculum. These sessions are meant to bolster emotional intelligence, build resilience, and discuss universal experiences of intern year. These sessions have covered topics such as health inequities, importance of the one-liner, narrative medicine, language in critical care, goals of care discussions, making mistakes, and emotional first aid, among others.

The Wellness Committee is a group of residents who gather quarterly to discuss and coordinate initiatives to improve all aspects of wellness (as above in infographic). In addition to each of their individual initiatives, members function in the space of social event planning as well. Previous initiatives have included a Fall 5K, Wernicke’s Wednesday’s (weekly bar meet-up), and a cornhole tournament.

Michigan Medicine Resident Well-Being Resources