Washington University, in partnership with the Wellness Connection, is offering great opportunities for employees to improve their physical and emotional wellness, and Hatice Goshtaiy, Research Administrator in the Division of Nephrology, is part of the program. Hatice is a Wellness Connection Champion, an advocate who encourages WU employees to take advantage of these valuable, free services WU offers for preventive health care.
“Preventive health care is extremely important for our physical and mental health, both short term and long term,” says Hatice. “It’s good for employees and good for the employer, so all around it’s a win-win situation.”
In her duties as a Wellness Connection Champion, Hatice attends quarterly meetings, participates in wellness programs, promotes all the wellness programs WU offers, and encourages employees to take advantage of them.
“I think we are extremely lucky that WU offers a lot of different programs. As an institution, WU supports employees to take time during their work hours and focus on their preventive health care.”
Check out the Wellness Connection website here. Upcoming events include:
- A weekly course on Mindfulness, held Wednesdays at noon, West Campus, 7509 Forsyth Blvd Ste 001, Clayton. Mindfulness-The Basics is the first half of the Mind Body Stress Reduction Series where one gains mindfulness skills of holding attention in the present moment with kindness and learning to let go of judging and striving as one explores and experiences the body-centered practice of Mindfulness.
- Brown Bag Lunch & Learn on Thursday, 12-12:30 pm, August 15, hosted by the Wellness Connection, featuring Art Maines, LCSW, who will speak about dealing with negativity and building interpersonal skills. Becker Medical Library King Center (7th floor) See here for details.
- A Wellness Workshop titled Eating on the Wild Side, hosted by MyWay to Health, meant to empower participants to make nourishing choices at the grocery store, farmer’s market and at home to maximize a food’s nutrient density and “get the most nutritional bang for your buck,” will be held Tuesday, August 13, 2019, 12-1pm, at the Brown School lounge (room 218).
Hatice is also involved with the Sustainability Office and is in the process of trying to register our division as a green office. “There is a lot we can do to be an environmentally friendly division,” she says. For example, one plan is to cut disposable kitchen items and provide reusable ones to reduce our trash. Hatice emphasizes that open communication and providing pertinent information are necessary to bring people on board for such transitions.
Follow this link to learn more about WU’s sustainability program.
Please contact Hatice if you are interested in becoming a Wellness Connection Champion; 314-362-9987 or hkgostaiy@wustl.edu.