The unknown of the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in chronic stress, lasting uncertainty, and the need for adaptability for the US workforce.  Health care disparities, burnout, exhaustion, and civil unrest have also been amplified by the pandemic. These themes are especially true for medical center clinicians, researchers, and staff, who have been on the front lines since 2020.    Since the start of the pandemic, Columbia University Irving Medical Center (CUIMC) Integrative Medicine, Human Resources, and Office of Work/Life programs became primary resources for our employees, struggling to maintain their mental, emotional, and physical well-being. Well-being Managers and Directors from various areas of the medical center, met bi-monthly via Zoom to consult, share strategies, and foster cross-institutional support, in the face of ever-changing institutional and governmental directives. Collaboration helped shape programs and provided a stream-lined approach to institutional well-being and resiliency, in the hope to prevent burnout. Like other institutions, we were forced to look outside the box and develop new programs, while simultaneously coping with loss of revenue, budget cuts, and staff redeployments. Through our collaboration during this time, we learned that consistent and timely communication is key to promoting and maintaining employee well-being. These programs continue to evolve as we transitioned back to hybrid approach, creating a new paradigm of well-being, resiliency and self-care.

In this session, you will learn:

• Multidisciplinary and cross collaborative strategies to support well-being within a diverse employee population during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.  
• The value of sharing resources and collaborating on new initiatives across large institutions. 
• Evidence-based self-care practices that can be implemented during uncertain and stressful times.
• A detailed analysis of programs delivered.