Caring for Ourselves and Each Other: Highlights from Our Inaugural Well-being Summit

Working in health care is meaningful—and challenging. Whether we provide direct patient care or support those who do, each of us can face adversity that makes it difficult to put our own well-being first. Yet caring for ourselves and supporting our colleagues are essential to our quality of life, the strength of our teams, and the care we provide to our patients and communities.

Bringing Together Well-being 

This summer, Carilion held its first Well-Being Summit, bringing together team members from across the organization who serve in both formal and informal well-being roles, including leaders, champions, navigators, clinicians, and other advocates who influence the well-being of their teams every day. The full-day gathering marked a significant milestone as Carilion's first event dedicated entirely to advancing employee well-being through collaboration, learning, and action.

The idea grew from an encouraging trend: Over the past two years, the number of people serving in formal or informal well-being roles across Carilion has grown significantly. 

“Many have taken on this work beyond their everyday responsibilities because they care deeply about their colleagues and want Carilion to be the best possible place to work,” said Kimberly Butterfield, director of Well-being.

But, with the many facets to well-being work it can be hard to know where to begin. The summit was designed to support the people doing this work, connect them with others who share their commitment, and equip them with practical tools, resources and next steps to take back to their teams.

“The day was an opportunity to fill these caregivers’ cups and demonstrate to them that there’s a whole community of other people with similar interests doing similar work, and they can call on that community for ideas, collaboration, and support,” said Kimberly. 

It also celebrated the progress already underway and made space for attendees to learn from one another through workshops led by an impressive lineup of Carilion well-being experts, along with national speakers who shared both inspiring stories and practical strategies to strengthen individual, team, and organizational well-being.

Well-being Benefactor Awards

Progress was celebrated in a meaningful way through the inaugural Well-being Benefactor Award, recognizing leaders whose influence and advocacy have advanced well-being across Carilion through strategic support and system-level impact. 

• Dean Lee Learman was recognized for helping establish the foundation for well-being across the academic health center, including support for the Well-Being Taskforce, creation of the Chief Wellness Officer role, and a culture that prioritizes and supports caregivers. 
• Dr. Tony Seupaul was recognized for championing the implementation of DAX technology to reduce documentation burden, improve efficiency, and support clinician well-being, helping providers spend more time focused on patient care.

5 Key Takeaways

• Well-being is a shared responsibility. Participants left with a stronger understanding that creating a healthy workplace is not the responsibility of a single department or leader. Meaningful change happens when leaders, champions, clinicians, and frontline team members work together to support one another.
• Small actions can have a meaningful impact. Author and TEDx speaker Risa August illustrated this through her “CAN Model,” sharing how the question “What can I do?” helped her reclaim agency after a brain tumor diagnosis and focus on the next achievable step. Her story offers a powerful lesson for strengthening well-being and workplace culture: Supporting a colleague, improving a workflow or modeling a healthy behavior may feel small, but these actions can build meaningful change over time.
• Connection and community are protective factors. Many sessions emphasized the importance of relationships, belonging, and social support in helping individuals and teams thrive. Participants gained new appreciation for the role connection plays in resilience, engagement, and professional fulfillment, and learned how programs like PeerRxMed can help provide structure for those connections.
• Supporting others starts with practical skills. National speaker Sean Lawler partnered with Dr. Carla Williams in developing a “Peer Support 9-1-1” workshop for the summit. As part of the learning experience, attendees practiced how to recognize distress, respond when a colleague is in crisis and create psychologically safer environments where people feel comfortable seeking and offering support.
• Resources and support already exist across Carilion. Participants gained greater awareness of the organization's growing well-being ecosystem and left with new tools, resources, contacts, and partnerships they could leverage to support their own teams.

A Meaningful Reminder

“One of the most meaningful aspects of the summit was seeing so many people who are committed to supporting their colleagues come together in one room,” said Lisa Uherick, MD, physician well-being officer at Carilion and chief well-being officer at Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine. “The energy, collaboration and shared purpose throughout the day reinforced that well-being is truly a collective effort at Carilion.”

Of course, a day focused on well-being would not be complete without everyone’s favorite well-being team member, Meadow. She made her rounds at the event, alongside her handler and director of Chaplaincy, Andrew Tressler. 

Lindsay McKinnon, manager of Wellness programs, joined Andrew to close the summit with a heartfelt Blessing of the Hands, a chaplaincy offering available to teams upon request. As attendees prepared to carry this work forward, the blessing served as a moving reminder: Caring for others begins with caring for the people who make that work possible, and well-being is central to how we care for ourselves, one another and our patients.

We all can help carry a commitment to well-being forward. Check in with a colleague. Ask for support when you need it. Consider one small change that could make your team’s work healthier or more sustainable. Tell us in the comments!