GW Resiliency & Well-Being Center

National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month

September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month — a time to remember that there are steps we all must take in looking out for loved ones, coworkers,  the people in our community, and those who have been impacted by this leading cause of death. The suicide rate for health professionals is higher than the national average. Suicidal thoughts can affect anyone regardless of age, gender, or background—and often indicate more serious issues that need further assessment and proper interventions from licensed mental health professionals.  Our goal is to ensure that individuals affected by suicidal thoughts or behaviors, and their families and friends, have access to the resources they need to discuss suicide prevention and seek help. Along with the resources available on our suicide prevention page, we would like to highlight the Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) and its  Healing Conversations, a one-time visit (phone, virtual, in-person)  that connects those who have lost a loved one to suicide with trained volunteers who are also survivors of suicide loss. 

Lifestyle for Whole Health:
Supporting your Purpose & Resilience

Leigh A. Frame, PhD, MHS
Associate Director, Resiliency & Well-being Center
Program Director, Integrative Medicine
Executive Director, Office of Integrative Medicine & Health

Why do you get up in the morning?  What makes you come to work?  What makes you get excited about doing x, y, z?  That is the center of whole health and everything else around it is really designed to support your purpose.  Knowing what is important to you—what makes you get up in the morning—will help guide your decision making in all aspects of your life, including your well-being. This video walks you through each aspect of whole health to help you build a Resiliency & Well-being Plan in five easy steps.  Watch the video.

Resiliency & Well-being for Whole Health: A Worksheet

Mission

The GW Resiliency & Well-being Center (R&W Center) supports individual, departmental, and institutional level purpose, which is the foundation of whole person health.  To support the meaningful contributions of all employees and trainees at GW, the R&W Center provides whole person care and education at all levels.

Individuals: Empowering our employees and trainees

• Educational talks and resources
• Group workshops
• One-on-one coaching/counseling

Units and Departments: Supporting all academic and clinical units and departments

• Consultations for tailored approaches
• Grand rounds
• Workshops
• Retreats

Institutional: Comprehensive advising and resource support

• Clearinghouse for resources, funding, and events throughout GW
• Policy and process development and refinement
• Helping leadership serve as role models of resiliency and well-being

Currently, the R&W Center serves the GW School of Medicine and Health Sciences (SMHS) and the GW Medical Faculty Associates (MFA), with some services available to other GW entities, such as the GW Hospital. We provide no cost initial consultations for any GW unit and can consult on a fee for service model.

Vision

We envision an inclusive culture of health and wellness (well-being) at GW and its medical enterprise—SMHS, MFA, and GW Hospital—that is both resilient during times of high stress and able to promote personal and professional satisfaction through:

• Genuine support of each other—fostered through positive interactions, effective communication, trust, and compassion
• Easily accessible, whole person resources to support the resiliency and well-being of all GW employees and trainees in the workplace and in their personal lives
• Clearly prioritizing well-being with professional success (purpose + work-life integration) over pure efficiency (performance alone)
• GW and its members serve as leaders and innovators to model, promote, and expand the culture of well-being beyond our institutional boundaries

Definitions

Well-being integrates mental health (mind) with physical health (body) resulting in a more complete   approach to disease prevention and health promotion that also takes into consideration high life satisfaction, a sense of meaning or purpose, and the ability to manage stress.

Tracking these conditions is important for public policy. Yet, many indicators that measure living conditions fail to measure what people think and feel about their lives, fundamental states such as the quality of their relationships, their positive emotions and resilience, the realization of their potential, or their overall satisfaction with life—their “well-being.” 

Whole Health utilizes well-being to support purpose. By integrating all aspects of Whole Health, whole person health can be achieved and facilitate an individual to live their best, most fulfilling life.

Resilience is the ability of a person, family, organization, or community to cope with and adapt to challenges or setbacks. Supporting resiliency includes stress management and coping.

Testimonials

"The Office of Student Support is a frequent collaborator with the Resiliency & Well-being Center for workshops and presentations. Featuring a caring and diverse staff that is knowledgeable in a wide variety of specialities and has a keen interest in promoting personal well-being, it is no wonder that we turn to the Resiliency & Well-being Center for student programming. They truly understand that to take care of others, you have to take care of yourself first, and are well equipped to provide the tools to do so."

Alex Velto, MS (he/him/his)
Associate Program Director
Office of Student Support (OSS)
George Washington School of Medicine and Health Sciences

I am listening to the recorded sessions that you have delivered to the law school and all I can say is my deepest, and most sincere thanks.  These sessions are magnificent. They have been extremely well reviewed.  I am so grateful for your consistency and the excellence of your presentations to the staff as well.  Here I am able to point to a very concrete impact. Our staff was initially irate and dissatisfied with the policies and procedures announced for their return. There was grumbling to the effect that the administration cared little for them. I can honestly say that this wellness series turned this around. I had some of the most uncertain members of our community specifically say that your lectures made clear that the administration cared about the staff.  Thank you, so very much. I could not have succeeded in the return to campus without you.
 
Dayna Bowen Matthew
Dean and Harold H. Greene Professor of Law
The George Washington University Law School

Thank you so very much for a wonderful talk. The team was so grateful and as always we learned a lot.  Thank you!
 
Kara S. Couch MS, CRNP, CWCN-AP, FAAWC
Nurse Practitioner
Director- Wound Care Services
George Washington University Hospital

We loved your talk on preventing burnout and think you are such an incredible speaker.  Thank you!! 

Blair Allais 
Dermatology Resident
GW Dermatology Chiefs
The George Washington University