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Physician Wellness Resources

Physician wellness, physician well-being, professional fulfillment, resilience, and burnout are all terms used frequently these days. SFMMS has recently re-established a Physician Wellness Committee to identify and evaluate the many resources currently available, identify unmet needs in the local physician community, and recommend strategies for SFMMS to address those needs and support our local physicians. As part of our Physician Wellness leaders work, they have created a list of resources and events for the SFMMS membership. Please see the resource list and events below!

Here are some of the resources available:

  • Physician Support Line: 1-888-409-0141 - a free confidential support line by volunteer Psychiatrists for US Physician colleagues during the COVID-19 pandemic. Available 7 days a week, 5am - 9pm PST.  
  • SFMMS Physician Wellness Committee -  With the goal of nourishing and sustaining our physician members, during the fall of 2020, SFMMS gathered a physician workgroup to focus on the re-launch of our Physician Wellness Committee in 2021. This physician driven committee provides a variety of offerings focused on nourishing our members through social, educational, and professional development events. This group is also curating a list of local resources for our SFMMS members, this resource document, updated quarterly, can be found HERE. For more information, contact SFMMS Director of Engagement, Molly Baldridge at mbaldridge@sfmms.org.
    • SFMMS Physician Wellness Facebook Group - SFMMS has set up a Facebook group where we will share resources, events and coordinate local meet ups for Bay Area physicians who are seeking connection and community with colleagues.
    • SFMMS Women in Medicine Program - SFMMS gathers together physicians to discuss issues facing those who identify as women physicians in San Francisco and Marin counties. For more information, please see our upcoming events section below.
    • Weekend Yoga with SFMMS Physician Wellness Committee Chair, Dr. Jessie Mahoney - Breathe. Heal. Replenish. Grow.
    • Culinary Medicine Sessions - Quarterly, SFMMS offers culinary medicine sessions with physician chefs who are members of SFMMS and CMA. The sessions include cooking demonstrations, recipes, and information on nourishing and healthy cooking habits. To view the recipes from these sessions, click HERE. To view the recordings of these sessions, scroll down to the previous events section at the bottom of this webpage. 
    • Beyond Holistic - Led by an SFMMS Physician Wellness Committee member, Beyond Holistic is dedicated to helping medical professionals through a multi-facited, interdisciplinary, integrative, and intercultural program of classes, workshops, events, and services. To learn more about this work, click HERE
  • National Physian Suicide Awareness Day Resources - Held every September, National Physician Suicide Awareness Day is a reminder and call to action. This website includes year-round resources to help prevent physician suicide among your colleagues by learning the signs, starting the conversations, understanding the underlying barriers and sharing the resources that can help those in distress seek mental health care.
  • American Medical Association Physician Health - the AMA offers articles and practical resources for address physician health and reducing burnout, including a 'burnout management tip of the week' you can subscribe to and receive in your email box each week.
  • MIEC Wellness - offering a toolbox of resources for physicians and their practice, whether it’s to improve the administrative efficiency of their office or access the appropriate wellness tools for themselves and other staff. The site also includes access to the Mayo Clinic's Well-Being Index and a confidential wellness tracking tool.

This list of resources will be updated regularly so check back often!


Upcoming Events

Quarterly: Mindful Yoga for Healers with Dr. Jessie Mahoney. Sign up for the Zoom link HERE.

Previous Event Information & Recordings

Fall Book Club discussing "Atlas of the Heart: Mapping Meaningful Connection and the Language of Human Experience" by Brené Brown. To veiw the event recording, click HERE.

Moving Ahead, Even Now with Dr. Linda Hawes Clever. To view the recording, click HERE.

March Book Club discussing "My Lovely Wife in the Psych Ward: A Memoir" by Mark Lukach. To view the recording, click HERE.

Mindful Yoga with Dr. Jessie Mahoney (February, 2022): To view the recording, click HERE.

Culinary Medicine (February 23rd): Keep Your Heart Beeting with Dr. Linda Shiue and Spicebox Kitchen: To view a recording, click HERE. To read the recipes from this session click HERE. Are you looking for all of our Culinary Medicine offerings and recipes? Scroll down!

Mindful Yoga with Dr. Jessie Mahoney (January 28th, 2022): A class inspired by Dr. Kristin Neff. What is tender self compassion?​ It is showing up for yourself with acceptance, love, warmth, caring, and softness. As Kristin Neff, PhD  says in her book Fierce Self Compassion- - Tender self compassion "is not for sissies." It requires strength and calm and a connected presence with yourself. When we learn to embody tender self-compassion rather than self-judgment, we show up empowered, strong, dynamic and powerful.It will feel unfamiliar at first, and then inspiring, hopeful, light, and even magical. To view the recording, click HERE.

Book Club (November 30th 6:45 - 8pm): Discussing "Pearls from the Practice of Life" with author and local Physician Dr. John Chuck. To view a recording, click HERE.

 To view recordings of these sessions, click HERE and HERE. To learn more about upcoming sessions, click HERE.

Culinary Medicine (November 9th 6-8pm): Community, Nourish, and Healing with Autumn Harvest Recipes: To view a recording, click HERE. To read the recipes from this session click HERE. Are you looking for all of our Culinary Medicine offerings and recipes? Scroll down!

SFMMS Wellness Presents: Parenting with Presence (October 14th 6:45-8pm): To view a recording of the discussion, click HERE. 

Book Club (September 28th 6:45 - 8pm): Discussing "The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse" by Charlie Mackesy.  To view a recording of the discussion, click HERE.

Women in Medicine: Mindful Yoga with Dr. Jessie Mahoney (July 10th 9am - 10am): This class is specifically designed to nourish, heal, and grow in your community! To view a recording, click HERE. To sign up for more LIVE yoga sessions with Dr. Jessie Mahoney, click HERE

Book Club (May 25, 6:30-8pm): Discussing “God’s Hotel: A Doctor, a Hospital, and a Pilgrimage to the Heart of Medicine” facilitated by author Dr. Victoria Sweet. To view a recording of the discussion, click HERE.

Book Club (February 2, 6:30-8pm): Discussing "Together: The Healing Power of Human Connection in a Sometimes Lonely World" by Dr. Vivek Murthy.

Women in Medicine (April 29th, 6:30-7:30pm): A guiding discussion from the book “Good Morning I Love You” by Dr. Shauna Shapiro. To view a recording of this event, click HERE (part 1) and HERE (part 2). 

Culinary Medicine Recipes: Are you interested in reading all of recipes from our Culinary Medicine Series? Click HERE!

Salmon with Raspberry Buerre Blanc and Veggies with Dr. Anne Cummings & Chef Mark Novak (June 10th, 6:30-7:30pm): To view a recording of this event, click HERE. To read the recipe shared during the cooking demonstration, click HERE

Cookbook for this Session: Make Every Day Mediterranean: An Oldways 4-Week Menu Plan is the go-to guide for getting started with the Mediterranean Diet. The award-winning book includes detailed menus (breakfasts, lunches, dinners, and snacks) that take you on a 28-day journey through many of the delicious and satisfying tastes of the Mediterranean Diet. Unlike most diets, the Mediterranean Diet doesn't cut out all the good stuff and leave you feeling deprived. It features a wide variety of foods that are flavorful, healthy, and lower in calories including vegetables, fruits, whole grains, nuts, legumes, beans, herbs, spices, and olive oil. Foods eaten in moderation include fish, seafood, poultry, eggs, and dairy. Desserts and red meat are saved for special occasions. By following this diet plan, you'll experience first-hand how to enjoy "good taste" and "good for you" at the same time

Spicebox Kitchen with Dr. Linda Shiue (May 13, 6:30-8pm): To view a recording of this event, click HERE. To read the recipe shared during the cooking demonstration, click HERE

Cookbook for this Session: Spicebox Kitchen: Eat Well and Be Healthy with Globally Inspired, Vegetable-Forward Recipes. In her first cookbook, chef and physician Linda Shiue puts the phrase "let food be thy medicine" to the test. With 175 vegetarian and pescatarian recipes curated from her own kitchen, Dr. Shiue takes you on a journey of vibrant, fresh flavors through a range of spices from amchar masala to za'atar. With a comprehensive "Healthy Cooking 101" chapter, lists of the healthiest ingredients out there, and tips for prevention, Spicebox Kitchen is a culinary wellness trip you can take in your own kitchen.

Healthy and Delicious Cooking for Families with Dr. Emma Steinberg (May 6, 6-7:30pm): To view a recording of this event, click HERE. To read the recipe shared during the cooking demonstration, click HERE

Cookbook for this Session: Vegetable Kingdom: The Abundant World of Vegan Recipes. Food justice activist and author Bryant Terry breaks down the fundamentals of plant-based cooking in Vegetable Kingdom, showing you how to make delicious meals from popular vegetables, grains, and legumes. The book is organized by ingredient, making it easy to create simple dishes or showstopping meals based on what’s fresh at the market. Bryant also covers the basics of vegan cooking, explaining the fundamentals of assembling flavorful salads, cooking filling soups and stews, and making tasty grains and legumes. With beautiful imagery and classic design, Vegetable Kingdom is an invaluable tool for plant-based cooking today.

Soup: the Unrecipe with Dr. Anne Kennard (April 13, 6:30-8pm): To view a recording of this event, click HERE. To read the recipe shared during the cooking demonstration portion of this session click HERE

Cookbook for this Session: Nourish: An Integrative Medicine Cookbook. Nourish is a new generation of cookbook, combining recipes for Food as Medicine, Herbal Medicine, and Mind-Body techniques to promote health in the body, mind, and spirit. Offering a wide range of Integrative Medicine topics including information on nutrition, cancer prevention, medicinal mushrooms, gut healing, and more, Nourish combines the latest scientific research with ancient wisdom for modern healing!Readers will learn how to reduce inflammation, tools for boosting the immune system, healing chronic disease, reducing environmental toxins, and promoting healthy relaxation and sleep.

The Mediterranean Diet with Dr. Nisha Patel (March 18, 6:30-8pm): To view a recording of this event, click HERE. To read the recipe shared during the cooking demonstration portion of this session, click HERE.

Cookbook for this Session: The Complete Mediterranean Cookbook from America's Test Kitchen. You will delight in this comprehensive cookbook for your journey in Mediterranean Cuisine that we chose as accompaniment to Dr. Nisha Patel's episode. Not only are there 500 user-friendly recipes embracing the Mediterranean cuisine concepts and applications in this cookbook, there are wonderful inserts with each recipe that describe the nutritional benefits of the ingredients. The book also contains several pages of nutritional contents for each recipe. Indulge yourself with this fun cookbook!

A Primer for Our Culinary Medicine Series with Dr. Marjorie Smith (March 9, 6:30-7:30pm): To view a recording of this event, click HERETo read the recipe shared during the cooking demonstration portion of this session, click HERE.

Cookbook for this Session: "Chef MD's Big Book of Culinary Medicine" by John LaPuma, MD. Dr. Marjorie Smith chose this cookbook for you to begin your journey in Culinary Medicine as an accompaniment to her episode “A Primer for our Culinary Medicine for Physicians Series”. Co-author Dr. John La Puma, a general internist and highly acclaimed chef, including he is a past recipient of the James Beard Award, is a pioneer in the establishment of culinary medicine as a specialty. He also was the first to teach culinary medicine at a medical school, and he holds culinary medicine conferences regularly. You can learn more about Dr. La Puma’s work by visiting his website, www.drjohnlapuma.com.

To see a list of SFMMS and CMA general offerings or to view recordings of past events, visit our Events page.