Health & Wellness Team Offer Fun, Relaxing Activities to Help CHM Students Unwind During Finals


Throughout medical school, students can spend much of their time studying—exerting a good amount of mental energy taking in gulps here and swigs there of information that, well,  took humans quite a bit of time to accumulate.

Yet studying can be most rigorous when proficiency with school curriculum is to be displayed. So the most intense stressful times during medical school focus around final examinations.
Sure, finals can be stressful.
Asking themselves what they could do to help alleviate some of that stress, the MSU College of Human Medicine Office of Student Affairs set out to give our terrific medical students an opportunity to sit back and, yes, unwind if at least for a bit.
It’s all part of helping our CHM students succeed, even if that’s helping them catch a breather and have a little fun in the process.
The Health & Wellness Team, comprised of MSU Faculty: Judith Brady, PhD; Laura Bennett, MA; and Patricia Brewer, PhD, among other Office of Student Affairs staff, created a week-long series of activities during exam week to reduce stress and allow the students in both Grand Rapids and East Lansing contingents a solid, meaningful break.
Attempting to supply activities for everyone, the week-long initiative has included art therapy, chair massages, mindfulness exercises, perpetual coffee and snacks, pet therapy, relaxation exercises, an ugly sweater holiday gathering and even yoga classes.
CHM students take in a variety of stress-free events during finals week
 
Created in the fall of 2011, the Health & Wellness team began planning such activities, not only as a way to reduce stress, but also as a way to promote adjustment for first- and second-year students, some of which come from as far as California and Canada.

So far, the week is working.
Direct stress reduction has been noted by the students in their feedback since the initiative’s inception. In 2012, close to 90% of those who responded said stress was indeed reduced. Additionally, over 90% strongly agreed that the activities put on by the Health & Wellness Team made them feel cared for and valued.
Students wrote statements such as, “I so appreciated the care and effort CHM put into my health and well-being during finals week.  It reminded me how lucky I am to be a CHM student.”
Another respondent said, “This program was just proof to us students that CHM cares and loves us!”
Many students even believed that the activities were beneficial to their learning beyond finals week. Over 60% strongly agreed the activities helped them gain practice insight.
“It was interesting to consider incorporating activities into future patient care,” said one respondent.
The Health & Wellness Team thought that it to be so successful, they plan to incorporate activities in the spring as well as the students themselves were enthusiastic to supply suggestions for future activities.
As far as this week, the Health & Wellness team incorporated past activities such as Therapy Dogs and yoga with massages and coffee breaks among do-it-yourself activities like “Make Your Own Stress Ball” and “Make Your Own Trail Mix,” sponsored by the Lake Michigan Credit Union.
CHM students try their hand at making the perfect trail mix to their liking.

Only time will tell what the Health & Wellness team comes up with next.

Good luck with finals!

Follow the CHM Office of Admissions on Twitter!  

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

After Another Strong Match Day, CHM Seniors Set to Take On Residency Positions Throughout the Nation

Image
Not many things came easy this last year. Yet despite plenty of disruptions and challenges, the Class of 2021 responded honorably in every way. That included displaying high levels of poise and patience during a residency selection cycle steeped in uncertainty amid a global pandemic that has upended life beyond just medicine. While the 2021 edition of Match Day marked the second in which fourth-year College of Human Medicine (CHM) students and their families were forced to celebrate virtually on the account of the pandemic, this year's seniors were the first to see their entire residency match process pivot to virtual.  Going online certainly presented it's hurdles, but the virtual nature of this year's interviews also helped to eliminate some of the larger barriers—time and cost—that are associated with the process during more traditional cycles.  The 2021 Main Residency Match became the largest in National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) history, with 38,106 total p
Read more

So You've Been Put On The Waitlist: What's Next?

Image
You've  waited for a decision and word has finally arrived: you've been placed on the waitlist. It's okay for applicants to feel some anxiety when placed as an alternate. That's normal. More uncertainty isn't something an applicant begs to endure. But don't necessarily take it as a bad omen either. More than disappointment, you should have hope. You still have a chance, after all. Considering the sheer number of applicants across the country each year, the truth is that it's actually pretty common to be in this situation. Thousands of accepted students matriculate off the waitlist each year. With only 5-10% of students matriculating from the waitlist at some schools, others accept as high as 50-60% of their incoming class from waitlisted applicants. The question then is, "What should I do now?" Remain Positive Waitlist does not mean rejection. While this isn't ideal, getting your name onto a waitlist is an accomplishment and shows
Read more

New Situational Judgement Testing Requirements for the 2023 Cycle: Additional Options and Recommendations

Image
While the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT) has been a standard of the medical school admissions cycle, additional testing on top of academic metrics has more recently begun to show value as institutions aim to assess applicants more holistically and equitably.  To better provide care for patients in an ever-evolving health care industry, the next generation of doctors must understand far more than chemistry and human anatomy.  The College of Human Medicine began requiring in 2021 that all candidates take the Casper Test, an open-response situational judgment test administered online. Innovative responses to educational imperatives have been an important trait of the college, extending that spirit to the admissions office.  The college, for instance, was one of the initial medical schools in the U.S. to implement the Multiple Mini-Interview (MMI) as part of its interview process and has continued with the effort now for close to a decade. So, including a situational judgment te
Read more