Wellness Program
The Office of Graduate Medical Education at Aiken Regional Medical Centers is dedicated to keeping residents physically, psychologically, emotionally and spiritually fit during their training. Increased quality patient care and satisfaction, decreased errors and better health system performance are all associated with physician well-being.
Residency is inherently stressful, therefore it's crucial to know about services available to you to take care of yourself and get the most out of your educational experience. Our goal is for well-being to be taken into account and incorporated into every aspect of the training environment. We hope that by doing so, we will build a culture of gratitude, respect and joy experienced by everyone who works at Aiken Regional, especially our residents.
Wellness Services and Initiatives
Peer Support Networks
We understand the importance of peer and social support networks in boosting residents' learning and working environments. Efforts to build these ties begin at orientation and continue for the duration of the three-year program. Birthdays and other personal achievements are recognized and celebrated once a month. We welcome incoming residents with special events and dinners, and celebrate resident promotions with special activities and meals.
Encouragement and Promotion of a Healthy Lifestyle
We encourage, promote and support healthy lifestyles for our residents and faculty. Healthy lifestyles are a critical element in helping residents and faculty maintain life/work balance and preventing illness and burnout. These efforts begin at orientation with education on the signs and symptoms of burnout, and continue throughout the three-year program. We provide residents with healthy food options and create schedules that support healthy sleep habits, time with family and loved ones, and time for exercise. We also provide residents and faculty with discounted access to the Wellness Center at the University of South Carolina Aiken that includes exercise equipment, group classes and personal training!
Faculty Mentorship Program
At the beginning of residency, each resident is matched with a faculty mentor with similar professional interests. Faculty mentors are expected to act as supporting "coaches" to their mentees. They are responsible for assisting residents in difficult situations, providing educational assistance and helping residents with academic activities. Faculty mentors are chosen based on their professional and personal experience and their ability to model and mentor healthy life/work balance, as well as continuous enjoyment and success in their medical practice.
Wellness Curriculum
Consisting of lectures lasting 30-60 minutes, the wellness curriculum topics will be included during didactic half-day sessions. Topics include, but are not limited to, depression, fatigue, burnout, conflict resolutions and stress management.