Wellness
The Wellness Committee is devoted to promoting resident wellbeing, reflective practice, and positive coping strategies for the challenges faced in residency. We are proud of our robust wellness support network, which enables openness, cohesion, and a culture of mentorship. We acknowledge that our residents and applicants have lives outside of the residency program. We strive to ensure a smooth transition throughout all phases of the program and experience an enhanced balance of meaningful work and meaningful relationships. We hope the skills and network you develop throughout residency will insulate you from fatigue during residency and will carry you well into your future careers.
Resident Retreats and Socials
Our residency program organizes resident retreats a couple of times a year. Resident retreats are an excellent way to share information and experiences about current clinical rotations and strategies for navigating resident life challenges. Some of our past retreats have included, minigolf and bowling, chocolate making, ropes and trampoline course, and pottery making, often followed by dinner at a local restaurant.
PGY 2-4 Reflection Groups
Training in psychiatry, including being on call can be stressful. Our PGY 2 residents participate in a monthly group facilitated by one of our lead CEPS lead physicians. During the one and a half hours of protected time, the group discusses some of the challenges they’ve experienced in the emergency psychiatry setting and discovers what they can learn from them. PGY3 and PGY4 groups also meet to discuss broader aspects of patient care. These groups provide reassurance in knowing that everyone shares the same stresses, whether it is the acuity, the pace, or the time of work. By unpacking how we all react to stresses, we learn more about ourselves, our patients, and are better equipped to handle any challenges that come our way in the future.
Wellness Physician Year Leads
Each PGY year is paired with a faculty member as a point of contact. Different years have different challenges, ranging from adjusting to residency, adapting to core psychiatry, identifying your career path, and thinking about Transition to Practice! Physician Year Leads are a friendly resource to reach out to for advice.
Physician Year Leads regularly get together with their PGY cohort for dinner. Discussion topics can range from physical and emotional well-being, financial well-being, clinical strategies, career opportunities, and more, depending on their year’s needs and interests.
Wellness Curriculum
We are in the process of building a robust Wellness curriculum involving multiple pillars and modalities of integrating wellness. Some of our previous initiatives include:
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A department-wide half-day for Wellness conference with didactics and skills-building
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Mentorship networks and a transition to practice curriculum
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Specific R1 physician wellness lead and check-ins
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Protected time in the curriculum, and after-hours sessions for wellness
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Wellness skills-building retreats
We recruit at least one resident representative from each PGY year to join the Wellness Committee as well. We regularly meet to promote resident wellness at the group level, plan resident events, and encourage cohesion and mentorship at the resident-resident and the faculty-resident level.
Resources for Residents
- Your Chief Resident
- Support and Counselling options for residents
- Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry's Learner Equity & Wellness Office provides support and counseling resources to all residents
- OMA: provides wellness resources through their website, or you may call 1.800.851.6606 for direct access
- E-physician Health: provides information for fellow physicians on difficulties they may encounter. Contains videos/advice/vignettes
- MD financial is an excellent financial advice source
