Wellness Program
Our program has the responsibility to promote and support a training culture where the residents’ well-being is prioritized. Our program’s approach to well-being includes:
- Scheduling that supports resident time away from work to engage with family and friends, as well as to attend to personal needs and to one’s own health.
- The opportunity to attend medical, mental health and dental care appointments, including those scheduled during their working hours.
- Education in identification of the symptoms of burnout, depression and substance abuse, including means to assist those who experience these conditions.
- Access to appropriate tools for self-screening.
- Access to the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) which provides free, confidential counseling for stress management, personal problems and substance dependency problems.
- Access to confidential, affordable mental health assessment, counseling and treatment, including access to urgent and emergent care 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
- Dedicated didactic sessions and committees to support resident well-being.
- Monthly wellness-related social activities with the goal of fostering cohesion among the residents in the program. These group activities may include meals, movies, bowling, concerts, yoga, hiking, dancing, painting, karaoke, sports, etc.
- An annual resident retreat that focuses on team building, self-reflection, wellness and mental health.
- Monthly resident meetings and resident-faculty meetings to allow for concerns to be expressed to the program’s leadership.
- Supportive Faculty Mentorship Program.
Wellness activities
To help South Texas Health System's first-ever cohort of STHS GME Consortium Family Medicine residents prioritize their own physical, mental and emotional well-being, the 10 physicians in training took part in an afternoon of wellness activities at the Tres Lagos Community Center.
Led by South Texas Health System Clinics' family medicine physician, Dr. Helena Cobos, residents participated in an afternoon of interactive activities focused on physician well-being and stress response and the effects of chronic stress on the mind, as well as mindfulness. Following a meditation and breathing activity, the residents created their own vision board during a special painting exercise.
