Goal 4: Well-being Strategic Plan

Develop a robust communication plan to better package and promote our commitment to well-being. What makes this a logical and practical decision to include in the strategic plan is the University of Richmond already offers many excellent well-being resources and programs that provide education, outreach, intervention, and treatment. We just need to do a better job of packing and promoting all the good things we are doing for the wellbeing of our campus community. This puts us in an opportune position to create and implement a momentous plan that will make a significant impact with minimal effort and investment. This is a unique opportunity for us to do something we do well, and do it better. Done properly, this has the potential to be transformational and bring us national visibly as leaders in creating a well-being community.

Complete – A URWell logo has been designed and launched and a Health and Well-being Unit website has been created.  HWB mission, vision, and values completed and communicated. A URWell launch letter is currently being distributed campus wide and this aggressive communication launch plan will continue fall 2021 and spring 2022. 

There are numerous outstanding national health and wellness programs and initiatives that we can participate that can provide guidance and a framework to creating a community of well-being. Some examples include:

✓ The Partnership for a Healthier America Healthier Campus Initiative - College is a time of profound change for many students–a time when new habits often are formed. By creating healthier food and physical activity environments today, campuses and universities can encourage healthier habits that will carry over into tomorrow. With that in mind, colleges and universities across the nation are teaming up with PHA to make their campuses healthier. Each college or university partner has committed to meet 23 guidelines—developed by PHA in collaboration with some of the nation’s leading nutrition, physical activity and campus wellness experts—around nutrition, physical activity, and programming on campus.

Complete – Assistant Director Fitness and Wellness has been working with Dining Services and Office of Sustainability and representatives from the Partnership for a Healthier America Healthier Campus Initiative to identify and determine 23 guidelines.  Progress delayed due to COVID-19.

✓ Healthy Campus 2020 - Provides a framework for improving the overall health status on campuses nationwide. Strategies suggested in Healthy Campus 2020 extend beyond traditional interventions of education, diagnosis, treatment, and health care at clinical levels. Through the collaborative efforts of health care academic, student affairs, and administrative colleagues in health care, academics, student affairs and administration, institutions of higher education can foster healthy environments and behaviors.

Progress - Assistant Director Recreation and Wellness and Manager of Health Education and Wellness to establish UR targets for Healthy Campus 2020 objectives based on current data for students and employees. 

✓ Exercise Is Medicine - An initiative focused on encouraging primary care physicians and other health care providers to include physical activity when designing treatment plans for patients. EIM is committed to the belief that physical activity is integral in the prevention and treatment of diseases and should be regularly assessed and “treated” as part of all medical care. Physical inactivity is a fast-growing public health problem and contributes to a variety of chronic diseases and health complications, including obesity, heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, cancer, depression and anxiety, arthritis, and osteoporosis.

Complete – The University of Richmond is now officially registered in the EIM on Campus program. We are in the process of reviewing resources to assist with implementing EIM on our campus including use of the EIM on Campus logo to use for promotional purposes and working with Communication to include this in our larger communications efforts. Our first year we received the bronze status and past two years received the gold status, the highest level.

As part of communication plan seek state, regional, and national recognition for health and well-being efforts and accomplishments.

Ongoing – Some awards and accomplishments worth mentioning:

✓ NASPA Region III Baccus Conference – University of Richmond was selected to host the NASPA Region III Baccus Conference. Conference successfully hosted Spring 2017 by the SHC Wellness Bandits on the University of Richmond campus with more than 120 participants registered.

✓ Active Minds Healthy Campus Award – The University of Richmond was one of only five finalist for the Active Minds Healthy Campus Award. Healthy Campus Award is presented by Active Minds to honor and celebrate schools taking a campus-wide, public health approach to promoting mental health alongside physical health.

✓ EVERFI Prevention Excellence Award – University of Richmond distinguished itself across the three domains being evaluated for this award: institutionalization, critical processes, and programming. This is a significant achievement, one that fewer than 10% of schools and colleges completing the ADI have attained. In recognition of this achievement, University of Richmond has been named the 2018 EVERFI Prevention Excellence Award winner.

✓ NIRSA/NASPA Well-being Summit – In October 2017, University of Richmond Associate VP for Health and Well-being was invited to participate and contribute his health and well-being knowledge and experiences at this Summit. This inaugural summit brought together 18 thought leaders from NIRSA, NASPA, and ACHA. At the Summit, these colleagues specialized in developing visionary ideas, sharing knowledge, and discussing integrated strategies and resources related to health and well-being.

Students are recognizing the need to be involved in this well-being movement. As a result we are seeing an increasing number of student wellness peer education and advocacy groups.  The student health and wellness initiative will provide additional administrative guidance and financial support to existing and emerging student well-being support groups. 

Complete – Have met with all existing well-being peer education/advocate group leaders and advisors to encourage them to be more collaborative and unified in their efforts and to discuss plans to provide greater financial and administrative support.  In fall 2019 a pilot program for a Peer Educator/Advocate Council was developed to provide greater administrative support and funding.  As a result of the successful pilot program the Council will continue and peer educators/advocates now have a suite located in the new Well-Being Center. 

Offer a Managing Anxiety Program (MAP) for students experiencing excessive worry, feeling stressed or overwhelmed, have intensive physical symptoms, or in search of effective ways to cope with anxiety and stress.

Complete  – Fall 2017 CAPS offered four 50 minutes sessions on various days and times.  Successful pilot program has led to continuation of program and additional well-being programs.

Recommend investing in wellness portals and mobile apps. We recently invested in an electronic medical record system which provides a patient portal to schedule an appointment, receive lab results and obtain health related information. 

Some options under consideration include:

✓ https://www.notokapp.com

✓ https://www.nbcnews.com/nightly-news/video/after-struggling-with-depression-teen-creates-notok-app-to-help-others-get-support-1283024963797

✓ https://recserv.uiowa.edu/echeckup-go

✓ https://youatcollege.com/product/

✓ http://ebmforstress.com/

Complete – After several years of research the product selected and approve by IT is You@College.  Contract approval has be delayed due to COVID-19.  Unfortunately, after over a year of trying to get Legal Counsel to approve agreement in ESM we have given up on You@College.  We have made arrangements to offer a free app to all students, staff, and faculty “Tapping” that we will be launching and piloting fall 2021.

After a comprehensive review of current and best practices of after- hours medical, mental and behavioral health, and sexual misconduct and support phone services, we will be proceeding with plans to offer mental health after- hour call service. In progress with plans to implement in Fall 2017, by expanding Fonemed, the provider currently utilized by Student Health for medical after-hours care.

Complete – Fonemed has been formally launched.  This pilot program will provide an affordable option to track and monitor the utilization and effectiveness of an after-hours mental health service. After a year, we will evaluate the utilization and effectiveness of Fonemed and weigh the pros and cons of switching to ProtoCall, a competitor used by many college counseling centers.  The pilot program has revealed a very low demand for mental health after hours and as a result we will continue with Fonemed.

Study the feasibility the University adopt an insurance hard waiver policy, requiring all students to carry health insurance coverage and verify their coverage at the beginning of each academic year. 

Complete – AVP Health and Well-being and Director SHC have been participating in a group studying the feasibility of requiring a hard waiver, mandatory health insurance.  Decision has been made to change vendors for FY20, however the plan will not change much other than an increase in cost. Beginning fall 2020 University of Richmond requires all students carry health insurance coverage and verify their coverage at the beginning of each academic year. 

Assuming the University will require mandatory health insurance, study the feasibility of billing insurance for some SHC and Caps services. This may include outsourcing the billing services. This may include outsourcing the billing services. This may also be an opportunity to generate revenue to expand and improve care.

Complete – An outcome of the Health Services review was that SHC will not be billing insurance.

There is an opportunity to have many initiatives funded through numerous health and wellness grant programs.

On-going – Several grants have been submitted by various departments in Health and Well-being Unity and successfully approved including:

✓ ABC Alcohol Education and Prevention Grant for $8,000. This is the fourth year ABC is offering grant funding to support the development of alcohol education and prevention programs across the commonwealth. Last year twelve Virginia community organizations and universities received grants to fund marketing and media campaigns, overtime law enforcement patrols, mentoring programs and other collaborative projects to help prevent alcohol misuse in their communities.

✓ ACS Tobacco-Free Generation College Initiative Grant for $9,000. The American Cancer Society, under the direction of its Center for Tobacco Control, launched Tobacco-Free Generation Campus Initiative (TFGCI), which provides grants to accelerate and expand the adoption and implementation of 100% smoke- and tobacco-free policies on college and university campuses across the nation.

✓ UR Recovery Web Program $50,000 - By supporting these priorities, your gift to the UR Recovery Web Program is an investment in students in recovery from substance use disorder. The college environment can be exceedingly challenging for students in recovery. The UR Recovery Web will provide a supportive environment within campus culture that reinforces the decision to engage in a recovering lifestyle.