NYC Health + Hospitals/Coler Opens Wellness Room Offering Emotional and Mental Health Support for its Long-Term Care Staff
The dedicated space provides an ambiance that rivals most spa lounges, equipped with aromatherapy, modern lounge-style furniture, soothing color patterns, and windows adorned with natural green landscapes
May 03, 2024
NYC Health + Hospitals/Coler opens its new, dedicated wellness room to support the physical and mental well-being of more than 700 employees, serving its five-star rated nursing home and rehabilitation center. At the height of the COVID-19 crisis, wellness rooms became an essential resource for holistic wellness among staff seeking respite from the stress of work and life. This new, permanent space includes amenities designed to help busy staff relax and destress, such as coffee machines, aromatherapy, calm music, fruit-infused water, healthy snacks, and designated areas for creative activities or just healthy conversation between colleagues. The dedicated space provides an ambiance that rivals most spa lounges, equipped aromatherapy, modern lounge-style furniture, soothing color patterns and windows adorned with natural green landscapes. The co-design partners, WXY Studios, focused on comfort and functionality to create an inviting space that will encourage staff to invest time in their self-care. The Wellness Room also includes art from the health system’s art collection installed by the Arts in Medicine department.
“As the physical and mental wellness of our staff are prioritized at Coler, the Wellness Room offers a unique experience for our team members to relax, manage stress and simply recharge,” said NYC Health + Hospitals/Coler Chief Executive Officer Stephen Catullo, LNHA, MBA.
“Wellness rooms provide a centralized location for NYC Health + Hospitals Helping Healers Heal wellness programming. They provide a space for staff to decompress and take a moment of wellness during their busy workday. Wellness rooms serve as a reminder that wellness has a permanent home here at NYC Health + Hospitals and provide a greater opportunity for the workforce to tap into their own concrete needs in order to be able to uphold high quality and safe care for our patient and resident populations,” said NYC Health + Hospitals Assistant Vice President and System Chief Wellness Officer, Jeremy Segall, MA, RDT, LCT, FPCC.
“I want to extend my heartfelt gratitude to the donors whose generosity brought this wellness room to life. Their support has made these spaces possible and created vital sanctuaries for our team’s well-being,” said NYC Health + Hospitals Senior Vice President and Chief External Affairs Officer Deborah A. Brown, JD, MSW. “I want to thank all our partners and supporters for recognizing the importance of this work and their impactful investment in our staff’s health and happiness.”
“We see this as a space of social connection with artwork and colorful nature graphics to nurture and support our essential healthcare workforce,” said Julie Torres Moskovitz, WXY Director of Sustainability, AIA, WELL & LEED AP, CPHC. “This project came into fruition with a beautiful collaboration from so many different voices, and we are excited to see it evolve with a life of its own now that the doors are open.”
“The Wellness Room provides a safe and calming space for our staff to decompress when the day-to-day activities are a bit too difficult to handle,” said NYC Health + Hospitals/Coler Associate Executive Director of Operations Monserrate Nieves-Martinez. “I’m confident that our staff will benefit so much from this beautiful space.”
NYC Health + Hospitals has aligned all of their workforce wellness programming to 8 dimensions of wellness:
- Physical – acknowledging the importance of physical activity, nutrition, and sleep.
- Emotional – coping effectively with life and creating satisfying well-being for oneself.
- Social – Developing a sense of connection, belonging and support of others.
- Intellectual – Recognizing creative abilities and finding ways to expand knowledge.
- Financial – Feeling informed with current and future financial well-being including preparing for short/long term goals and emergencies.
- Environmental – Understanding how your social, natural, and built environments affect your health and well-being.
- Spiritual – Discovering a sense of greater purpose and individual meaning.
- Occupational – Finding personal satisfaction and feeling valued in one’s work.
“The [Wellness] room gives off such positive energy and vibes as soon as you go in,” said NYC Health + Hospitals/Coler Activity Therapist George Smith.
“The ambiance of the Wellness Room is comforting and soothing. It’s a place where staff could decompress and find peace of mind,” said NYC Health + Hospitals/Coler Nurses Michelle Hall and Geraldine James.
“The room is absolutely beautiful and will do so much good for the workers at Coler — I love it,” said NYC Health + Hospitals/Coler Food Services Worker Rubina Chavez.
Without the incredible work of NYC Health + Hospitals’ Office of Philanthropy and its generous donors, the work to advance our commitment to staff and their overall wellness through the creation of wellness rooms, among other supportive resources, would not be possible. If you would like to donate to NYC Health + Hospitals, please visit this link on our website.
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MEDIA CONTACT: Jovemay Santos, NYC Health + Hospitals/Coler, 212-848-5849
Rafael Dominguez, NYC Health + Hospitals/Post-Acute Care, 646-988-3599
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About NYC Health + Hospitals/Coler
NYC Health + Hospitals/Coler is an 815-bed skilled nursing facility located in Roosevelt Island, providing comprehensive skilled nursing, medical and rehabilitative care for more than 70 years. NYC Health + Hospitals/Coler is committed to serving New York City and the surrounding communities, while setting an example as a leader in memory care programming and rehabilitation; it is the first long-term care facility in the United States to receive a Silver Beacon Award for Memory Care by the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN). Rated as a “Best Nursing Home in 2024” by Newsweek, with a ranking of 5th best in New York State, the facility earned a Five-Star CMS rating which designates them among the top 10 percent of skilled nursing facilities in the country. The facility also ranks in the top 1st quintile in the New York State Department of Health Nursing Home Quality Pool. For more information, visit www.nychealthandhospitals.org/coler.
About NYC Health + Hospitals
NYC Health + Hospitals is the largest public health care system in the nation serving more than a million New Yorkers annually in more than 70 patient care locations across the city’s five boroughs. A robust network of outpatient, neighborhood-based primary and specialty care centers anchors care coordination with the system’s trauma centers, nursing homes, post-acute care centers, home care agency, and MetroPlus health plan—all supported by 11 essential hospitals. Its diverse workforce of more than 43,000 employees is uniquely focused on empowering New Yorkers, without exception, to live the healthiest life possible. For more information, visit www.nychealthandhospitals.org and stay connected on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.