FIU News - Florida International University

As the fourth-largest university in the nation, home to over 10,000 faculty and staff members, FIU takes the health and fitness of its employees very seriously. 

Through programs like its Panthers Active Wellness Services(PAWS), employees can take part in activities like the Panthers Walking Challenge, Couch to 5K, lunchtime workshops and even get health screenings.

Over at theOffice of Employee Assistance(OEA), employees are welcome to join in on mindfulness and meditation sessions, sleep health seminars, financial fitness lessons and also receive counseling services.

Isabel Alfonsin-Vittoria, director of the Office of Employee Assistance (OEA) and two-time alumna, has been leading the OEA’s meditation workshops for four years. 

A licensed psychotherapist and certified employee assistance professional, she says she has noticed that visitors to these sessions seem more relaxed and comfortable.

Since the beginning of OEA’s mindfulness workshops six years ago, she estimates they have reached about “600 unique individuals.” Alfonsin-Vittoria has done sessions at MMC, BBC and over at the Engineering Center.

She says both PAWS and the OEA aim to treat employee wellness as a holistic matter. Different programs target different aspects of life, like financial fitness, physical fitness, mindfulness and adequate sleep.

“We can’t ignore that work and life are tightly wound together,” she says.

Katie Boulos, Manager of Special Projects and Initiatives in the Robert Stempel College of Public Health & Social Work, often comes to the mindfulness sessions led by Alfonsin-Vittoria. She says they give her a “nice break to look forward to in the middle of the day.”

“I always think I don’t have time for it and then when I come I’m so glad I did. I just feel refreshed,” she adds.

Vittoria encourages discussion after each mindfulness session, so employees can reflect on how they’re feeling.

“Many of them say they are responding better to stressors, they are less anxious or they say they are more in the moment than stressed about the future or worried about the past.”

OEA teaches employees about stress management, resilience and compassion in the workplace.

“Not all employers have the benefit and the support of their administration to provide these kinds of programs,” says Alfonsin-Vittoria, adding that research shows these programs boost morale and lead to higher retention in the workplace.

Alfonsin-Vittoria wants FIU employees to make use of these programs, which are on campus, free of charge and tailored to them

“Everyone on staff is licensed and trained. We hold ourselves to a very high standard of compassionate care,” she adds.

“We’re colleagues, so we care very much about each other and we are also a part of the fabric of the same university system that they work in. It’s coming into a known entity and to someone who is invested and is experiencing what you’re experiencing.”

As a testament to its commitment to employee wellness, FIU recently won the 2019 Florida Worksite Wellness Award, held by the Consortium for a Healthier Miami-Dade Worksite Wellness Committee.

The awardrecognizes the efforts of Florida businesses that go beyond in their efforts to nurture the health and wellbeing of their employees.

Employers are judged based on the quality of their programs and how they approach concerns like physical activity, nutrition, injury prevention and tobacco cessation.

Reflecting on the award and HR’s future goals to further improve upon employee wellness services, Alfonsin-Vittoria says she hopes to reach as many employees as possible, so they know there is a place where they can get help and feel safe, welcome and heard.

“We want to stomp the stigma,” says Alfonsin-Vittoria. “Reaching out for help is a sign of inner strength, not weakness. Suffering quietly is needless, we’re right here and we’re here to help.”

For more information on the Panthers Active Wellness Services programs contact Nathan Burandt at nburandt.edu. 

Source: Fiu.edu

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