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Tag: GW Resiliency & Well-Being Center

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The Rotation is taking the time to spotlight units within our wider community. Today, we talk to Dr. Leigh Frame, director of the GW Resiliency & Well-Being Center within SMHS.

The Rotation: What year was the Resiliency and Well-being Center established? Did it emerge to address a specific need or priority within SMHS?

Dr. Leigh Frame: The GW School of Medicine & Health Science (SMHS) Resiliency & Well-being Center (R&W Center) was officially launched in 2021. Its foundational groundwork began in 2016 with the "One GW Health" concept, and further developed with the appointment of the first Chief Wellness Officer in 2018. The COVID-19 pandemic significantly accelerated the Center's formation as a vital response to critical need under the tutelage of SMHS Dean, Dr. Barbara Bass, and the direction of Drs. Lorenzo Norris and Leigh Frame.

The R&W Center emerged to address urgent and specific needs within the GW Medical Enterprise, primarily healthcare worker burnout and mental strain. The pandemic highlighted critical vulnerabilities, with 35-54% of nurses and physicians experiencing substantial burnout symptoms. A 2020 survey at GW revealed a 75-100% increase in negative well-being among residents, identifying critical needs such as after-hours appointments, protected clinical time for personal appointments, online self-scheduling, and telehealth options. These alarming findings underscored the necessity for a structured, tailored, whole-person approach to well-being and resiliency support.

The R&W Center has developed into a broader movement that fosters a culture of care and connection. Its work focuses on whole-person care, which is built on each individuals’ purpose, and provides services on institutional, departmental, and individual levels. There is a wide range of initiatives the Center offers, including mindfulness, webinars on a variety of health topics, and retreats.

The Rotation: There is a wide range of initiatives the Center offers, including mindfulness, webinars on a variety of health topics, and retreats. Which initiatives elicit the most participation from the community?

Dr. Leigh Frame: What makes the R&W Center stand out is its whole-person care model. The Center doesn’t just respond to crises; it actively works to prevent them by embedding wellness into the everyday lives of the people it serves. We believe that well-being is best cultivated through experience. Thus, some of the Center’s most popular offerings are the ones that engage all senses:

  • Therapy dog visits that bring joy and calm, especially during exam periods or stressful rotations.
  • “Ask the Expert” Lunches with students to create an informal conversation over healthy food to learn about well-being (e.g., nutrition, self-care, stress management).
  • Yoga and mindfulness practices that reconnect minds and bodies.
  • Art therapy workshops invite creative expression through various types of media.
  • Sound bath meditation sessions provide a deep sense of rest and nervous system reset.

In addition, tailored programs like the Women’s Well-being Lecture Series are very popular, as they create spaces for candid conversations about the unique pressures and challenges in healthcare and academia face. Topics range from hormonal health and nutrition to work-life integration and equity, offering not just information but solidarity.

Another flagship offering, the Care for the Caregiver program, trains healthcare workers in Psychological First Aid and the Hope Module to provide support and linkages to resources for peers in distress, strengthening community bonds and creating a healthier system.

These offerings are not just feel-good extras. They are grounded in science and intentionally designed to provide safe spaces for conversations and self-expression and meet the real needs of healthcare professionals who are often operating at the edge of exhaustion.

Clinically, the R&W Center has seen individual encounters for psychotherapy and medication management steadily increase, rising from 176 in 2023 to 348 in 2024, with psychotherapy remaining the most utilized clinical service.

The Rotation: How do units within SMHS work with the Center to create a program or service?

Dr. Leigh Frame: One of the most accessible parts of the R&W Center is how easy it is to collaborate. Any faculty, staff, or trainee can request a no-cost consultation through the Center’s website. Our programs and services are multidisciplinary by design, drawing on a team of integrative health professionals with a wide range of expertise from behavioral health to nutrition science.

Whether you are a department chair hoping to build a stronger, healthier team culture, faculty seeking resources for learners, staff seeking a safe space to reflect, or a resident seeking strategies to manage stress, the Center will work with you to customize its services to meet your unique needs.

Programs can include lectures and workshops, experiential activities, monthly or quarterly wellness programming, grand rounds, peer support training, or even help revisiting departmental policies to better support work-life integration.

The Rotation: What are future plans for the Center—either new directions you plan to move or new types of programming or services you plan to provide?

Dr. Leigh Frame: The R&W Center is not slowing down; it is expanding. Plans for the future include:

  • Deepening partnerships across departments and campuses to create a more unified culture of care, including the development of tailored well-being plans for each SMHS department.
  • Creating a culture of care through expanding our Care for the Caregiver program (explained above) and institution-level initiatives.
  • Integrating well-being and resiliency into our trainees’ experience through initiatives like proactive Resident Well-being Visits, designed to create an intentional safe space for check-ins, emphasize self-care, raise awareness of resources, and normalize help-seeking. This is an essential part of professional development.
  • Enhancing research and evaluation efforts to continue building an evidence base for what works in promoting well-being within healthcare settings and refining our offerings.
  • Continued program innovation informed by community feedback, emerging needs, and the latest science.

As the Center grows, so does its vision - to help GW Medicine become a national model of what it looks like when wellness is not an afterthought, but a foundation.

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July 24th is International Self-Care Day! There isn’t a single definition of self-care, as self-care is different for everyone, but it generally refers to how we maintain, improve, and protect our health and well-being. At its core, self-care boils down to doing things that preserve or improve your mental or physical health.

The GW Resiliency and Well-Being Center has a great Self-Care webpage with resources on types of self-care, self-care strategies, and self-care resources. Types of self-care listed here include breathing exercises, massage therapy, nutrition, meditation, exercise, journaling, yoga therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, and gratitude practice. While these all sound fantastic, it can be tough to fit self-care into a busy schedule. Figuring out how to fit self-care into your daily routine can boost your overall well-being.

One first step in better self-care is making sleep a priority. Aside from just feeling tired, not getting enough sleep can impact how you feel emotionally and cause health issues. Going to bed at the same time every night and getting up at the same time each morning can help regulate your body’s natural sleep cycle and improve your overall sleep quality. Avoid work emails before bed to help lower your stress levels. Avoid large meals, caffeine, and alcohol before bedtime to help you fall asleep. Put down your phone before bed to help your eyes avoid the blue light that keeps your body awake. Check out the GW Resiliency and Well-Being Center’s page on restorative sleep for more healthy sleep habits you can incorporate into your routine!

Physical activity also plays a role in self-care. Physical activity, whether it’s going for a walk, getting in a yoga session, going for a swim, lifting weights, going for a run or jog, or going for a hike, can be a great way to boost your mood and manage stress or anxiety. In addition to how good getting in some physical activity can make you feel, physical activity can help decrease your risk of cardiovascular diseases. Getting in more physical activity can also help you get better sleep!

Doing little things that you enjoy can be a big boost to your self-care. If you enjoy reading, carve out some time on a Saturday or Sunday morning to find a comfy spot and read with a nice cup of coffee or tea. Make time for hobbies that bring you joy and satisfaction. Do things that help you feel refreshed and recharged. And finally, make time to connect with friends, family, or loved ones. Invest in your relationships with those you care about and develop, nurture, and maintain a support system around you. Feeling connected to other people can be a great way to promote your self-care and that of those around you!

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Mental health is an essential part of overall physical health and well-being. Yet, the stigma surrounding mental health prevents many people from seeking help when they experience mental health struggles. If you or someone you know needs support, there are resources available to help.

Suicide Prevention Resources:

  • 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline: The Lifeline provides 24/7 access to free and confidential support for people in distress, prevention and crisis resources, and best practices information for health and mental health professionals.
  • Student Health Center (SHC): If you are thinking about suicide, call 202-994-5300 (option 2). Counselors are available 24 hours a day. If you think someone you know is in danger of suicide, call GW Emergency Services at 202-994-6111, call 911, or seek help at the nearest Emergency Room.
  • National Suicide Prevention Resources:
  • District of Columbia Suicide Helpline:

Resources for Students:

  • Anxiety Toolbox: This virtual workshop consists of three, one-hour sessions for students who want to gain an understanding of anxiety and learn skills to recognize and manage anxiety symptoms. 
  • AcademicLiveCare: AcademicLiveCare offers unlimited, no-cost virtual telehealth appointments for full-time GW students. Available visit options include on-demand urgent care, and scheduled appointments for psychiatry, therapy, and nutrition counseling.
  • Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS): Part of the Colonial Health Center, CAPS is GW’s center for mental health treatment. Telehealth and in-person counseling appointments are available. 
  • SilverCloud: All GW students have free access to SilverCloud’s Digital Mental Wellbeing Platform, which is fully confidential and available 24/7. Programs address a wide range of mental health challenges including stress, depression, anxiety, and insomnia.
  • GW Listens: This student-run anonymous hotline (202-902-8255) is a place where students can talk to peers about struggles. Hotline hours are from Sunday through Thursday, from 9:00pm to 1:00am.

Resources for Medical Residents and Fellows:

Resources for GW Employees:

Himmelfarb Library Mental Health Resources:

Himmelfarb’s Healthy Living @ Himmelfarb Collection includes a number of mental health-focused titles including:

Taking care of your mental health is an essential part of physical health. Make your mental health a priority and take advantage of the resources available to you. Don’t be afraid to reach out and ask for help. Everyone faces their own mental health struggles, and there is no shame in asking for help and relying on available resources when needed.

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Himmelfarb Library recently expanded our collection of suicide and suicidology books with the help of a generous gift from Dr.Seymour Perlin, MD, and his wife Ruth Perlin. Dr. Perlin was a professor of psychiatry and the director of GW’s psychiatry residency program from 1977 to 1998. Two books included in this collection were written by Dr. Perlin and were donated by Dr. Perlin.

Image of the book cover of A Handbook for the Understanding of Suicide by Dr. Seymour Perlin.

A Handbook for the Understanding of Suicide, written and donated by Dr. Perlin, is available in the book stacks on the basement level (call number: HV6545 .H27 1994). This book reviews a wide range of information from a variety of disciplines on suicide. It offers historical, literary, philosophical, and social science points of view in addition to a psychiatric discussion of suicidal behavior. A Handbook for the Study of Suicide, also written and donated by Dr. Perlin, is available in the books stacks (HV6545 .H27 1979). 

A full list of the items purchased for this collection is available on our New Books collection page. Here’s a brief overview of the available titles:

  • Advancing Suicide Research (Kairi Kõlves, Merike Sisask, Peeter Värnik, Airi Värnik, and Diego DeLeo): Written by leading researchers in the field, this is a comprehensive toolbox of current best practices in suicide research, including quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods research in suicide prevention from a public health perspective. Proper use of epidemiological measures and study designs, definitional issues, historical background, and ethical aspects of suicide research are also discussed. Location: Book stacks. Call number: HV6545 .A38 2021
  • Alternatives to Suicide: Beyond Risk and Toward a Life Worth Living (Andrew C. Page and Werner Stritzke): This book illustrates how fostering resilience and a desire for life can broaden and advance an understanding of suicide. Summarizing the existing literature, this book outlines a new focus on the interplay of risk and resilience that leads to a life-focus approach to suicide prevention. Emerging technologies and advances in data analytics using real-time monitoring of suicide dynamics and their use in suicide research and prevention are also covered. Location: Book stacks. Call Number: HV6545 .A48 2020.
  • The American Psychiatric Association Publishing Textbook of Suicide Risk Assessment and Management (written by Liza Gold, and Richard Frierson): This e-book offers new perspectives on suicide including medical and social use of destigmatizing and more precise language and covers issues related to suicide including suicide risk factors and their clinical implications, nonfatal, self-injurious behavior, physician-assisted suicide, and teaching suicide risk assessment and management as part of psychiatric residency programs. Increased suicide rates among specific populations are also examined.
  • Building a Life Worth Living: A Memoir (Marsha Lienhan): In this memoir, author Marsha Lienhan details her journey from a suicidal teenager to a world-renowned developer of life-saving behavioral therapy dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT), using her own struggle to develop life skills for others. Location: Book stacks. Call Number: RJ506.S9 L56 2020.
  • Community Interventions to Prevent Veteran Suicide: The role of Social Determinants (Laura Yoder, rapporteur): This electronic conference proceeding summarizes the presentations and discussion of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine March 2022 symposium with the same title. Relevant social, cultural, and economic factors that influence suicide risk among veterans are discussed. Applications for applying current suicide prevention best practices and treatment at a community level are also explored.
  • Managing Suicidal Risk: A Collaborative Approach (David A. Jobes and Marsha Linehan, foreward): This e-book provides essential tools and guidance for assessing and treating a suicidal patient. Step-by-step instructions and forms for evaluating suicidal risk, developing a suicide-specific outpatient treatment plan, and tracking clinical progress and outcomes are provided.
  • The Oxford Handbook of Suicide and Self-Injury (Matthew Nock): This book is available in print and electronically. This comprehensive handbook provides a summary of the most important and exciting advances in suicide and self-injury and the ability to predict and prevent it. Print Copy Location: New Book Shelf (Himmelfarb 1st Floor). Call Number: HV6545 .O9394 2014.
  • Physician Suicide: Cases and Commentaries (Peter Yellowlees): Available in print and electronically, this book explores the culture of medical training and practice, burnout, anxiety, depression, and addiction can lead to suicide among physicians through fictional cases. Ways to mitigate these factors and improve physician health and well-being are explored and case studies are accompanied by literature reviews with resources for further reading. Print Copy Location: New Book Shelf. Call Number: R690 .Y45 2019.
  • Preventing Suicide: The Solution Focused Approach (John Henden): This e-book explores secondary suicide prevention, evidence-based solution-focused brief therapy, risk assessment, management, and medication. This new edition takes an empathetic and validating approach to work with individuals considering suicide.
  • Suicidal Behavior (Richard T. McKeon): This new edition explores the latest approaches to the assessment and treatment of suicidal behavior. Topics covered include epidemiological data, the role of opioid use problems, personality disorders, and trauma play in suicide. Location: Book Stacks. Call Number: RC569 .M41 2022
  • Suicide Assessment and Treatment Planning: A Strengths-Based Approach (John Sommers-Flanagan, Rita Sommers-Flanagan): This e-book provides a holistic, wellness-oriented approach to understanding suicide and working effectively with individuals who are suicidal. A culturally sensitive, seven-dimension model offers methods to collaboratively integrate solution-focused and strengths-based strategies into clinical interactions and treatment planning. Case studies, practitioner guidance, personal and professional self-care techniques, ethical issues, and counselor competencies are included.
  • Suicide Prevention: An Ethically and Scientifically Informed Approach (Samuel Knapp): Offering essential information about assessing, managing, and providing mental health treatment for suicidal adult outpatients, this book guides the reader through the process of treating suicidal patients, from screening to relapse prevention. Location: Book stacks. Call Number: HV6545 .K537 2020.
  • Why People Die by Suicide (Thomas Joiner Jr.): Following a suicide, the most troubling questions are often the most difficult to answer. How could we have known? What could we have done? Why? Written by a clinical psychologist whose own life has been touched by suicide, this book offers a clear account of why some people choose to die. Location: Book stacks. Call Number: HV6545 .J65 2007.

For additional resources on suicide prevention, visit the GW Resiliency and Well-Being Center’s Suicide Prevention website. 

If you are having thoughts of suicide, reach out to GW Student Health Center Suicide Prevention Hotline (202-994-5300, press option 2), submit a CARE Report, or call the 988 24/7 Crisis and Support Lifeline. Counselors are available 24 hours a day, every day.

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