Why Wellbeing, Emotional Intelligence, and Resilience?

The constructs of wellness and wellbeing are complex and associated with a variety of definitions and models. For example, wellness is often associated with lifestyle habits that include healthy nutrition, physical activity, smoking cessation and adequate sleep. Wellbeing may include aspects such as emotional, spiritual, mental, social and vocational dimensions. For the purpose of the QEP, the definition of wellbeing focuses on stress management, emotional intelligence, and resilience. This focus will equip our students with skills to better prepare them to be future professionals. Key thought leaders have identified that constructs associated with wellbeing and emotional intelligence create the foundation upon which we build successful lives. Resilience, defined as persistence, hardiness, and an ability to bounce back from difficulty, is identified as a key skill. These theoretical constructs ground the QEP and form the foundation for a range of programs and services.

What is wellbeing?

Wellbeing is you living your best life! And, it’s also a five-year project at HSC that will enhance student learning and student success outcomes. It demonstrates our commitment to improving the learning environment for students. Through it, students will increase awareness of wellbeing, gain increased emotional intelligence skills, and develop new capacities for resilience–flexibly adapted to the individual, and their program/school. It will also enhance the overall culture of health and wellbeing at the university.

Through our wellbeing program we will equip students to succeed at HSC and into their professional careers.

Who will benefit?

The entire HSC community will benefit from the QEP. However, in particular, students will receive a range of benefits from the QEP. The QEP will result in specific student learning outcomes. Students will be able to:

1. Students will identify concepts associated with wellbeing, emotional intelligence, and resilience.
2. Students will create a stress management growth plan as part of the emotional intelligence.
3. Students will develop capacities for resilience to support their success in school and future professions.

Why Wellbeing?

The choice of wellbeing as the focus of the HSC QEP resulted from a comprehensive, 2-year, inclusive planning process that explored ways to help students succeed in graduate school, and in the future. The QEP topic developed through survey data collection, focus groups, and input from faculty, staff, students, and external stakeholders (preceptors, rotation site staff). The QEP will ensure students understand wellbeing, and can use skills to become well-equipped, balanced, thriving future professionals. It will integrate enhanced emotional intelligence and resilience skills.