From reminding you about an appointment to picking up milk, post-its help many of us navigate busy days. For the Medicine Program, these little ‘stickies’ take on new meaning: reminders to be kind, joyful, mindful, and connected with each other.
As a collaborative effort to promote wellness, each huddle focuses on a different theme – joy, gratitude, kindness, patience, laughter, the bright side, self-love, flow, and courage – offering a moment of mindfulness.
Led by Andrea Brissette, Director of Medicine Programs, and Katherine Brunet, Clinical Coordinator, the initiative began with a simple gift – a book called Be Happy by Dr. Rebecca Ray. “I was inspired to share this with my team – things we can do to support our own happiness," Andrea said, “We call it the Happiness Project.”
During a recent session on laughter, Andrea read off a section of the book and opened the exercise with “Would you rather?” questions. Then, staff jotted down what made them laugh – at work or in daily life.
One note read: “It brings me joy to work at a place where staff look out for one another and truly care about their work.” Another simply read: “Puppy breath!”
“These messages now cover the wall,” Katherine says, pointing to the splashes of coloured handwritten notes on heart-shaped and everyday square post-its. These voices are shared among staff – to each other or about themselves – bringing a level of comfort through this simple act. They take on new meaning, gently reminding those stopping for a quick peak of the kind, compassionate voices that fill the Medicine Unit.
“Life can feel kind of heavy for some. At times people struggle without their colleagues knowing. I worked with leadership to develop a mini series for huddles,” Andrea says, explaining the focus was to give staff a morale boost. It has since grown into so much more.
Feeling like you need a boost? Take a stroll to Wing A2 and B2 Medicine Units – discover the Kindness Board and the memos to live, laugh, love, and much more. You might find yourself smiling – and inspired to leave a note of your own.