Inspiring Impact: Workday Wellness - Addressing staff concerns about stress and burnout

Healthcare Change Makers

For this special series, Inspiring Impact, HIROC is partnering with AdvantAge Ontario to highlight the work of several of the presenters at their online education and networking event in May.

Today we’re talking with one of the session presenters, Paige Fernandes, Planning and Community Engagement Coordinator at Belmont House, a long-term care facility in downtown Toronto. With staff struggling with stress and burnout during the pandemic, Paige and her physiotherapist colleague Gordana Perunicic-Stankovic, created an evidence-based program called Workday Wellness.

Those were difficult days at Belmont House and they thought, let’s create a program that incorporates mindfulness and exercise and see how it goes. Workday Wellness is still in its early days, but Paige and Gordana are encouraged by staff interest in the program and want to keep doing everything they can to foster a positive work environment.

Quotables

“In conversations with Gordana and my colleagues, we noticed that staff were struggling. We wanted to fuse our practices together – physiotherapy and my personal interest in fitness and wellness – to develop a wellness program.”

“It’s all about sharing and learning and continuously growing.”

“It doesn’t have to be this big encompassing program. I encourage other homes to really start small – look at what you have in place and build off that.”

“The seeds were already planted and we’re just growing this movement into something very positive.”

“All of us have been going through similar things in long-term care and we would be happy to share the knowledge and experience we’ve gained so we can get through some of these challenging times together.”

Mentioned in this Episode:

Belmont House

AdvantAge Ontario

AdvantAge Ontario Annual Convention

The Circle of Health, US Department of Veterans Affairs

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