Physical Health ▼

• Residents are provided with a membership to the Lawndale Christian Fitness Center, which is a first-class fitness center with a large variety of strength and aerobic training equipment, an indoor track, and fitness classes for all levels.

• There are also a variety of formal and informal physical activities that LCHC staff participate in together, including bike rides, running groups, sports leagues, and even marathon training, probably the best known being our annual 5K.

• LC Fit is the LCHC Staff Wellness initiative that lets you earn rewards simply by connecting your activity tracker (i.e. Fitbit, phone app, apple watch, etc.) with our wellness platform. Residents can earn Amazon Gift Cards every month depending on points earned.

• In partnership with the Chicago Botanic Garden, Lawndale also sponsors The Farm on Ogden, which features affordable locally-grown vegetables, cooking classes, and other supports for healthy eating.

• We also provide a generous meal stipend for days worked in the hospital ($1,000 per year) and provide lunch for the residency team prior to our didactics every Wednesday.

Mental and Emotional Health ▼

• Confidential behavioral health services are available to all residents from LCHC’s own behavioral health staff and/or a number of external behavioral health providers, including Agave Studio, Cornerstone Counseling Center of Chicago, Meier Clinics, Lydia Home Association, Phoenix Rising Counseling and Guidance, JL Family Services, and Sinai Health System.

• Lawndale FMR regularly conducts and addresses burnout surveys and other self-assessments to support emotional health, and encourages the use of appropriate tools for self-screening, such as: Burnout, Depression, Anxiety and Addiction, Sleepiness.

• Our regular “Wellness Wednesdays” consist of Balint Groups, targeted afternoons for independent wellness (i.e. no didactics), as well as more formal equipping sessions for best practices to prevent and address burnout and for building sustainability in future work.

Spiritual Health ▼

• Lawndale boasts a variety of churches and other spiritual communities to which many of our staff are connected, such as local Bible studies or prayer groups. Our partner churches include Lawndale Community Christian Church, through which LCHC was founded, the New Life Community Church, with several nearby locations where many staff attend, and Harmony Community Church, where LCHC’s CEO also serves as pastor.

• All residents are supported to attend either the Christian Community Health Fellowship Conference or the Global Missions Health Conference each year. These are special times to step away from clinical spaces and reflect and re-energize on mission with kindred souls.

Community Health ▼

• Community is so central to Lawndale FMR that it has its own section on our website, because promoting healthy community is at the heart of what we do. It’s the reason we have a formative Orientation Month for our interns and why we break bread together every Wednesday. Our residents call each other friends, sharing meals and life together, inside and outside of work.

• Our annual residency-wide retreat brings together faculty and all residents (and families!) for a special time of fellowship, rest, and re-energizing for our work together.

• In addition to the annual retreat, residents also have a class retreat in the spring season to promote community and wellness. These are cherished days for the residents to make lasting memories.

• Finally, our residents join faculty and all LCHC providers at the annual LCHC Provider Retreat in January each year. This is a long LCHC tradition that brings together the entire LCHC provider family for a weekend of reflection and encouragement.

• All residents are paired with a LCHC physician mentor to promote resident well-being and personal and professional growth. Mentors help shape the resident’s Individualized Learning Plan (ILP), self-evaluations (including burnout inventory), electives plans, and vision for post-residency life.