11/15
Wellness
Navigating holidays in a pandemic, again
Experts from Penn’s Center for Public Health Initiatives and Positive Psychology Center offer six tips for making the holiday season joyful, fun, and safe.
A self-help guide to treating IBD
In her new book, clinical psychologist Melissa Hunt offers a cognitive behavioral therapy approach to helping people with Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis improve their quality of life.
Five things to know about the upcoming flu season
Thanks to COVID prevention measures, last year’s flu season was among the mildest in years. Penn experts explain why this year may be different and how to prepare.
Choose personal exercise goals, then tackle them immediately
Research from the Perelman School of Medicine reveals that having people set their own fitness goals and pursue them immediately, rather than giving them assigned goals that begin gradually, is most likely to result in lasting positive change.
Mentorship an ‘essential ingredient’ for nursing Ph.D. students
A new School of Nursing initiative places doctoral students into small peer-mentorship groups. The researchers who implemented this found it offers an important supplement to one-on-one peer support and faculty advising.
Penn celebrates a decade of Be in the Know
The University launched its 10th year of the Be in the Know campaign which focuses on wellness for eligible staff and faculty.
Combining gamification, cash incentive increases veterans’ exercise
A new study finds that daily step counts increased by approximately 1,200 among veterans who were given goals and participated in gamelike interventions with loss-framed cash rewards.
Having a strong life purpose eases the loneliness of COVID-19 isolation
Those who felt their life was guided by meaningful values or goals were more willing to engage in COVID-19 protective behaviors.
Game-based program boosts physical activity among diabetes patients
Penn Medicine research shows that adding gamification with either competition or support increased physical activity for patients with Type 2 diabetes.
William Adelman appointed executive director of student health and counseling
Adelman, who has more than two decades of experience in adolescent medicine, will assist current leadership in creating a new, all-inclusive Student Health and Counseling Services.
In the News
Penn is offering free Narcan through vending machine on campus
A vending machine on Penn’s campus will offer free Narcan and other wellness and health products, with remarks from Jackie Recktenwald and Benoit Dubé of Wellness at Penn.
FULL STORY →
My brother’s recovery from a car crash became a lesson in how to talk to doctors and nurses
Emily Largent of the Perelman School of Medicine writes that communication is part of healing, as she experienced when her brother was in a car accident and unable to notify family himself.
FULL STORY →
Millennial HR professionals are entering the C-suite, and their priorities reflect their lived experiences: ‘We spend a lot of time getting to know folks deeply’
Matthew Bidwell of the Wharton School points to an uptick in student interest in employee wellness strategies.
FULL STORY →
Stressed? Depressed? Mindfulness training could offer long-term relief
Yvette Sheline of the Perelman School of Medicine is quoted on how many cultures have used different variations of mindfulness, and that classes are generally affordable and accessible in most cities.
FULL STORY →
The less college students sleep, the worse their grades, study finds
Two hundred Penn students and staff participating in a seven-week online course to build better sleep habits have reported an overall decrease in symptoms of insomnia, according to Rebecca Huxta of Wellness at Penn.
FULL STORY →
New on the job: Penn director of well-being initiatives creates tools for success
As Wellness at Penn’s inaugural director of well-being initiatives, doctoral candidate Jackie Recktenwald of the Graduate School of Education is looking to improve student health and wellness across campus.
FULL STORY →