Tenth International Conference on Health, Wellness & Society

Abstract

This workshop reviews a model we developed over the last three years to provide assistance to the “helping” professions in our community. A literature review demonstrates that with the new challenges in healthcare and society, many professionals are experiencing workplace burnout at higher rates never before recorded. Our department formed a large Federally Qualified Health Care Center with the aim of providing 360° care to individuals. This new practice model includes wellness, pro-health, safety, education, mental health, spirituality and family/community based care. During this process we discovered that healthcare workers, teachers, first responders (including firefighters and police officers) and county health department workers were at a greatly increased risk of workplace stress and burnout. Our department developed and conducted 2 one-day mini retreats in wilderness areas to combat this trend. Thus far, we have received tremendously positive feedback with “standing room only” retreats. This workshop will review the steps and the resources we used to develop this program. We will also share our victories and defeats in order to assist attendees interested in using this model. The main focus of the workshop will be to give the participants some simple “tools and recommendations” and then to allow them to develop their own retreat curriculum and ideas. This will all be done in a very non-threatening way in a small group format. Each participant will receive a flash drive with information on how to set up a retreat.