- College of Medicine
A field day – featuring egg races and a tug of war – capped off Spirit Week at the College Medicine March 2-6. The activities, organized by the Peer Support Program and the Movement in Medicine student groups, were designed to lift spirits as students prepare for exams and build a stronger med school community.
“The Peer Support Program started a couple years ago as sort of grassroots initiative and now it’s an official student group,” said second-year M.D. student Matthew Abrams. “So another of our goals is to make this an annual tradition to raise the profile of the group and to get more people involved while helping to foster mental health for our students.”
On Field Day, students, staff and faculty showed their athletic prowess in a range of competitive events including the egg and spoon race, tug of war and three legged-race. The Peer Support Group also hosted a Circle of Wellness with rock painting and a “Gratitude Gram,” where students wrote letters of gratitude to someone who helped them in a meaningful way.
“Our second-year students are also preparing for their STEP 1 exams and so Field Day was an opportunity to provide much-needed wellness activities,” Abrams said. “Studies have shown that just reflecting and expressing things that we are grateful for can help boost resilience.”
Participants receivedgift baskets with small goodies. The week’s activities also had themed-dress days including Twin, Wacky Socks and Tacky Tourist dress-ups.
