Belinda Anderson, Ph.D., M.A.Ed., founding director of the Institute of Health and Wellness at the University, recently attended the first of three on-campus sessions of the one year-long Leadership Program in Integrative Health Care at Duke University.
The only seminar of its kind in the U.S. for experienced health care professionals, the leadership program combines personalized training, mentorship, and skill development to educate attendees on integrative health care practices. This area of health care prioritizes treating the whole patient by addressing the full range of physical, emotional, mental, social, spiritual, and environmental influences that may affect a person’s health.
“I feel honored to be undertaking the Duke leadership program because of the opportunity to learn from the esteemed faculty, who are internationally recognized leaders in the fields of integrative health care and leadership, and from fellow students who have a wealth of health care experience,” Anderson said. “The Duke program takes a unique approach to leadership, which is based upon the concept of ‘informed-mindfulness’—a connection of mindful self-awareness and self-regulation with educated decision-making.”
The leadership program prepares attendees to lead transformative change using the integrative approach at their own organizations. Participants are instructed on topics including leadership and strategy; integrative health care and the health care environment; communication and business operations; and health and wellbeing. Graduates of the program will also receive personalized guidance in creating a specific business plan for implementing integrative strategies within their respective organizations.
“The aim of the program is to produce individuals who will transform health care, which is totally aligned with [the mission of the] Institute for Health and Wellness,” Anderson explains. “My plan is to embody these leadership qualities and to bring this conceptual approach to Monmouth as the basis of our own campus-based health and wellness initiatives, plus as a foundation for our collaborative work with external partners.”
Created in 2018, the Institute for Health and Wellness at Monmouth University serves as a forum for education, research, and collaboration on issues of human health and wellness delivered through scholarship, supported programs, community engagement, and local partnerships. The goal of the institute is to advance a broad spectrum of health care initiatives, including advocacy, education, policymaking, and workforce development.