“Wellness is an active process of becoming aware of and making choices toward a healthy and fulfilling life. Wellness is more than being free from illness, it is a dynamic process of change and growth.” – UC Davis

“…a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.”
– The World Health Organization

“a conscious, self-directed and evolving process of achieving full potential.”
– The National Wellness Institute

To support students’ wellness, you can suggest that they:

Visit uOttawa services

• Mental health and wellness: Staying well during COVID-19
• Health Services includes a Mental Health group, healthy lifestyles, and other services.
• Student Academic Support Services provide many tools and resources, including counselling.

Consult external resources

• More Feet on the Ground. “This online resource is intended to be a one-stop shop for any campus professional or student leader looking to understand more about mental health and refer a student to relevant programs or departments. It was developed to help faculty, administration and campus staff learn how to recognize, respond and refer students experiencing mental health issues on campus… This resource was developed by the Council of Ontario Universities, Brock University, and the Centre for Innovation in Campus Mental Health, which is funded by the Ontario Government.”
• Consult resources on staying emotionally healthy during a pandemic, such as:
  • “How to Stay Emotionally Healthy During the Coronavirus Outbreak” by Jamie D. Aten, in Psychology Today, Mar 2020.

How and when to provide suggestions and resources

There are no rules for this but some ideas include:

• Sending periodic Brightspace announcements, which can be set up in advance.
• You can put resources links like the ones above in a Resources section in Brightspace, available in the Brightspace template, located in “Quick start overview and resource documents“.

Up next

The next chapter addresses the possible roles of teaching assistants in a remote course.

Please feel free to contact us at any time with questions, suggestions, and concerns. In particular, we check this form each semester and will continue to update this guide as the situation evolves.