Watching the news can be a difficult experience. It can be especially complicated if you happen to be personally affected by what is being reported. Just this weekend we heard of the tragic passing of one of the NBA’s all-time greats, Kobe Bryant. This news had a great impact on my children who actively follow the NBA. After hearing the news, I sat down with them and let them express their sadness about this news and helped them make sense of this tragedy.
Now imagine the impact of daily global news on our international visitors as well as members of the NEOMED community: folks who were horrified by the growing tensions between the U.S. and Iran over the winter break; people who have friends and family at the epicenter of a rapidly spreading respiratory virus in Wuhan, China; those whose emotions are on edge from the growing humanitarian crisis in Venezuela.
At NEOMED we want all our international students, faculty and staff to know: You are not alone! We have resources available to help you during times of uncertainty, whether the stress comes from studies, work, or family and world events. At the Office of Global Engagement, we want to encourage our international visitors, students, faculty and staff to reach out when you need help.
Ways to get help
- Look at your NEOMED badge-backer for a list of resources. If you don’t have one, ask at the Campus Security desk for the additional card. There’s one card for students and a different card for faculty and staff.
- Check out the information on the resource card available here, which you’ll see at additional sites around campus.
- Go to the NEOMED Cares web page, which collects University-wide resources that are sorted into resources for students and resources for faculty and staff, making it easy to find what you need.
- If you are concerned about an individual ― faculty, staff or student ― in the NEOMED community who may need help, contact the Care Team. This campus-wide network of members provides resources to support mental health, well-being and help-seeking.
NEOMED Cares is a campus-wide campaign led by the Mental Health Committee to promote awareness of mental health and wellness resources, educational opportunities and access to help throughout the campus community.
—Submitted by Victor Torres, M.S., director of the Office of Global Engagement