Penn Highlands Family Medicine - Team Building, Bonding, and Fun

Penn Highlands Residents BowlingThe Penn Highlands Family Medicine Residents were excited to participate in this year's event. We took the opportunity to use the Mental Health Task Force grant for focusing on healthy ways to deal with the stress.  We invited faculty and mentors to join us as well.  We started the afternoon with a healthy lunch from a local restaurant called Preskos.  We enjoyed organic salads, poke bowls, and fresh fruit smoothies.  We then divided into two teams for bowling. We ranged from first time bowlers to very skilled.  There was a lot of laughing and encouragement.

Then we spent some time discussing the stresses associated with medicine, residency, and life. We started with an anonymous survey ranking how stressed we have felt over the past year, with 0 meaning no stress at all and 10 being the most stressed.  The first-year residents ranked 7.5, the second year residents measured at 6, and the attending averaged 4. We self-reflected and shared how we personally experience stress.  These included physical, psychological, emotional, cognitive, and social effects of stress.  The most common sources

Resident bowling

 of stress we noted were study, family, and work related.  The physical effects of stress were insomnia, irritability, decrease efficiency, and change in eating behavior.  We found that the best ways to deal with stress include exercise, talking with peers, and having a healthy routine including a regular sleep schedule.  

Overall everyone felt that it was an effective event for team building, bonding, and fun.  With the remaining $100, we plan on using it towards an escape room to enhance our team building and problem-solving skills.  

Thank you again for this wonderful opportunity and supporting osteopathic resident wellness.