Tools and resources

Find the wellness tools that fit best for your group or unit's needs. We've compiled many best-practice and evidence-based tools and resources for implementing your mental health and well-being action plan.

On this page

Community health and well-being

Health and well-being are foundational values held by UM students, staff and faculty. We envision a thriving community with a holistic wellness culture at UM. The university is a hub for innovation and change; focusing on the health and well-being of our community members is essential in supporting both academic and professional excellence. Review the suggested recommendations and related tools to help build and maintain a culture of holistic wellness at UM.

Consider implementation of the workplace and student National Standards guide

National Standard for Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace and National Standard for Mental Health and Well-Being for Post-Secondary Students inform how UM supports student, staff and faculty mental health and well-being overall. We recognize, however, that different units and groups within the university have specific needs and challenges. As a unit or group, consider adopting and implementing the standards to support your mental health and well-being today!

Encourage community-building

Dedicate spaces within our community for restoration, contemplation and relaxation allowing students, staff and faculty the opportunity to recharge, build community and have fun together. The Office of Sustainability hosts related events throughout the year.

Get active

Relax and recharge by taking a walk through one of the unique gardens at both the Fort Garry and Bannatyne campuses, or check out UM sport and recreation for in-person and virtual fitness facilities and information.

Sports and Recreation Facilities

Create a wellness strategy or action plan

Build a wellness-focused culture within your unit. Set up a few virtual 1-1 meetings for new hires to meet with their new colleagues and discuss any tips for building camaraderie virtually.

Similarly, faculty and instructors can create breakout rooms for students at the start of class to answer some ice-breaker questions and get to know one another. You can also read about how to implement icebreakers for online classes.

Create your Mental Health and Well-being Action Plan

Provide opportunities

Allow staff, faculty and students to actively engage in the creation and enhancement of wellness initiatives. Learn more about facilitation tips or opportunities for Success Through Wellness Grants.

Explore past Success Through Wellness Grant recipients

Support, understanding and inclusion

We value all members of our community and seek to actively support each other’s mental health and wellness. We value accessible, effective services for all.

Foster conversations

Enable a clear and safe pathway to support for all UM community members when seeking wellness and mental health resources.

If you are a manager, speak openly about mental health and mention university resources such as the Employee and Family Assistance Program program to your team often so they know there are supports available. This is an easy way to normalize reaching out for help.

For example: “Just a reminder that in challenging times such as these, we can all sometimes need some additional support. The Student Counselling Centre and the Employee & Family Assistance Program are among the many resources available to you.”

Resources

The University of Manitoba has Elders available to support both students and employees. This unique resource is available through the Elder Profiles webpage.

Self-directed learning for the workplace

Use these resources to explore how to support positive mental health in the workplace.

Take action: Take a minute to reflect on your current mental health. Can you think of a time in your career that you felt more supported and motivated? Thinking about the reasons you felt that way, can you bring that to your current team?

Self-directed learning for students

Take action

Language matters. Use person-first language (for example, “Person with a substance use disorder” instead of “addict”, and “Person who uses a wheelchair” instead of “Confined to a wheelchair.”)

Ask people about their chosen pronouns/language (Pronouns Matter) and avoid stigmatizing language (see Language Matters).

Work to decrease stigma

Take actions to increase mental health literacy so that staff/faculty can better support students and each other.

This may include:

  • supporting increased managerial and teaching excellence across the university.
  • increasing the capacity of staff and faculty to create a safe environment.
  • effectively responding to students and peers who are experiencing mental health problems.
  • providing staff and student options about their tasks, projects and assignments and let them choose their deadlines to increase autonomy/ownership.

Resources

Take action: At each team meeting, watch one of the National Standard videos explaining the 13 factors of a psychologically healthy and safe workplace, and discuss what that means in your workplace. How can you better support your unit in each area? How can you each support each other in regards to the factors?

Learn more about the supports for students, faculty and staff experiencing transition, crisis and distress, as well as the resources to help you help each other.

Balance and flexibility

We value a work and learning environment that recognizes the complexity of our experiences and supports holistic wellness.

Develop resources for students

Develop additional resources for students that teach skills and strategies to engage in actively maintaining their mental health, resilience and wellness.

Take action: Consider sharing something new you learned each week about inclusivity, anti-racism work or harm reduction with your team to show that you are continually learning and that mistakes are OK. Explore educational and inclusion guides provided by the Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion for more ideas.

Encourage a culture of healthy productivity

Emphasize healthy work practices such as taking regular breaks and engaging a flexible work policy where possible.

  • Get to know the University of Manitoba's Employee Wellness UM Intranet site, which includes healthy workplace resources. (Navigate to the site by visiting the "Employee resources" section of the UM Intranet and selecting the "Employee wellness" site under "Health and wellness". UM login credentials are required to access the UM Intranet.)
  • List of Healthy Break Activities by Workplace Strategies for Mental Health.
  • Encourage employees to move often throughout the day. Stand up to fill your water bottle, throw out your garbage instead of using a desk bin, Increase options for flexible education and evaluation for students

Take action: Do 1-1 meetings while walking (inside or outside!). Movement can help the meeting feel less formal, increase your problem-solving abilities, and add in a movement break.

Prioritize healthy workload management for employees

Review, prioritize and streamline workload to identify and decrease unnecessary workload-based stressors.

Take action: Better time management can lead to improved mood, improved relationship, better work productivity and success and higher self-awareness. Try setting boundaries, creating a to-do list and prioritizing and setting a timer for a “30 minute crunch time.”

Resources for managers with employees on sick leave

Support holistic mental health and wellness initiatives

Work to actively support ongoing, holistic mental health and wellness initiatives for all employees. Develop resources for staff and faculty that teach skills and strategies to engage in actively increasing and maintaining their mental health, resilience and wellness.

Take action: Consider implementing a positive program such as a monthly random acts of kindness draw where employees can nominate a colleague to receive a coffee for helping them out, making them feel heard, etc. Random Acts of Kindness Workplace Calendar Link.

Resources

Two Canadian national standards inform the UM mental health strategy Success Through Wellness: ‘Mental health and well-being for post-secondary students’ and ‘Psychological health and safety in the workplace.’ They provide a set of guidelines, tools, and resources created to help organizations and post-secondary institutions promote mental health and prevent psychological harm.

Consider the resources provided here as you create your unit/group mental health and well-being action plan to ensure that your action plan is well-rounded and inclusive.

Balance resources

Clear leadership and expectations resources

Civility and respect resources

Engagement resources

Growth and development resources

Involvement and influence resources

Organizational culture resources

Protection and physical safety resources

Psychological and social support resources

Psychological demands resources

Psychological protection resources

Recognition and reward resources

Workload management resources

Contact us

Arlana Vadnais
Associate Director, Wellness and Prevention

Arlana.Vadnais@umanitoba.ca