In support of UBC’s commitment to workplace health and wellbeing, HR has secured special, one-time funds to subsidize the costs associated with offering a unique professional development opportunity to UBC Vancouver faculty and staff.
Developed at Google and founded in neuroscience, Search Inside Yourself (SIY) is a unique training program that uses emotional intelligence and mindfulness to optimize performance, build leadership skills and increase wellbeing. The SIY program consists of:
Cost: $50 per person (eligible for PD funding). Registration deadline: January 5, 2018.
Spots are limited and are filled on a first come, first served basis. Register now!
For more information, including program benefits and what’s included in the cost of the program, visit the Search Inside Yourself webpage.
QPR Suicide Prevention Training | December 11 | 9:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. (Location: Point Grey)QPR Training is an internationally recognized suicide prevention program designed to help you question, persuade and refer. QPR acts as an emergency mental health intervention designed to save lives, much like CPR or other methods of emergency medical intervention. Learn to recognize suicide warning signs, how to approach someone who may be at risk, persuade the person to seek appropriate health services, and connect the person to resources that will help resolve crises. Suicide is preventable. Find out more and register now.
This workshop will provide important information about different types of sit-stand desks and platforms available on the market. Understanding the pros and cons of each will assist departments, staff and faculty in deciding which option is most suitable. Product samples will be available for participants to try out in order to get an idea of how the different models impact positioning and workflow. Find out more and register now.
Changes in the workplace continue at a rapid pace. How do we not only respond to the changing workplace, but also engage with it in ways that support our career development? Join UBC’s Career Navigation & Transition Consultant Pooja Khandelwal in a group coaching series on Building Career Resilience in Change.
Attend this three-part, lunch-hour series to gain insights and skills about career resilience, including the ability to access appropriate resources. Find out more about the series and register now.
If your department is looking for more efficient response and support with regards to ergonomic issues for staff, consider taking the three-hour Office Ergo Rep Training. Learn basic ergonomic risk factors and assessments, as well as proper computer workstation set-up, and get resources to take back to your unit. Find out more and register now.
In support of UBC’s commitment to workplace health and wellbeing, HR is offering a unique professional development opportunity to UBC faculty and staff at the Vancouver campus. Developed at Google and founded in neuroscience, Search Inside Yourself (SIY) is a unique training program that uses emotional intelligence and mindfulness to optimize performance, build leadership skills and increase wellbeing.
The cost is only $50 per person (eligible for PD funding). Spots are limited and are filled on a first come, first served basis. Register by January 5, 2018. Find out more and register now.
January 22 – March 25: UBC’s Annual Walkabout
January 31: UBC Suicide Awareness Day
February: Annual Travelling Health Fair (dates to be announced in January)
Happy spring everyone! The tulips and daffodils have come out to greet us and UBC’s summer semester is almost in session. Things around campus will gradually slow down over the coming months as preparations begin again for the fall.
In speaking to colleagues in past years, this seems to be a time when staff and faculty feel that they have more time to invest in their own health and self-care. With this in mind, I would like to share a cautionary suggestion for improving our collective health literacy this spring: Just say no to search engine diagnosis: Avoid Dr. Google.
Outside of my role at UBC, I am a volunteer contraception counsellor at a local sexual health clinic. I would describe a large majority of the clients that I meet as “Googlers”. These clients come into the office, their brains overflowing in information, convinced of a diagnosis and terrified by chat rooms filled with side effects and worst-case scenarios.
It is important to know that I whole-heartedly believe in arming ourselves with information and in using the internet as a tool to empower, to learn and as a way to facilitate support networks with respect to health. It is great to do research before meeting with a health care provider or to understand how a type of medication works; however, obtaining this information from a trusted and validated source is paramount.
Reading information from un-validated sources can lead to inaccurate self-diagnosis, and high anxiety provoked by reading horror stories about medication side effects. This anxiety can be further elevated by often frustrated, first-person experiences that are more of a venting opportunity than practical solution. The truth is, everyone’s body is different, and has the possibility of reacting differently depending a myriad of factors.
Research shows that we are far more likely to recover quickly and successfully if we are positive about our outcomes. Turning to Dr. Google can in fact raise our anxieties instead of assuaging them. We read about unsuccessful outcomes and possible eventualities and we convince ourselves we have all of the answers. As humans, we have a tendency to catastrophize (try saying that three times fast). We assume the worst and can become unwilling to take a second opinion, even when it comes from a medical professional. This type of information can actually hurt our recovery time and quality of life through the treatment process.
The best advice that I can suggest to clients and our readers is this: don’t Google when it comes to your health.
There is nothing wrong with wanting a second opinion or to look into a recommended treatment, but turning to specialists, other doctors or trusted sources can assist with confusion, doubt and anxiety.
This month, I invite you to raise your health literacy by finding trusted and well documented sources of health information. When you do, bookmark them so that you can easily find them again without having to ask Dr. Google.
All my best,
Miranda
Check out this new way to connect with your family physician or GP, online!
Medeo: Wherever you are, you can quickly and easily visit your BC doctor. Connect via computer, iOS or Android devices. Services available in BC with a valid Care Card.
_________________________________________
References:
Agarwal, M., Dalal, A., Agarwal, D., et al. (1995). Positive life orientation and recovery from myocardial infarction. Social Science & Medicine, 40 (1), 125-130.
Lench, H. C. (2011). Personality and health outcomes: Making positive expectations a reality. Journal of Happiness Studies,12(3), 493-507.
Scheier, M., Matthews, K., Carver, C., et al. (1989). Dispositional optimism and recovery from coronary artery bypass surgery: The beneficial effects on physical and psychological well-being. Journal Of Personality And Social Psychology. 57(6), 1024-1040.