On Wednesday, August 21, 116 residents and fellows were joined by friends and family members at the Newfields Beer Garden for a casual event to connect at the start of the new academic year. “The Newfields Welcome Event was a great opportunity to introduce Newfields to those not familiar with the location, as well as provide time outside of work to spend time with colleagues, friends and family in a beautiful outdoor setting,” said House Staff Forum Chair Namita Agrawal, a PGY-4 resident in Radiation Oncology. Event attendees, including co-planners Tim Evans and Jessie Ullman, both PGY-4 Medicine-Pediatrics residents, enjoyed getting to connect with so many different residents and fellows and their friends and family members.
House Staff Forum hosted the event in support of resident/fellow wellness in addition to promoting the Newfields GME membership program. The membership pilot program, new in 2019, provides free one-year digital family memberships to Newfields to all residents and fellows, granting access to the Indianapolis Museum of Art, the Garden at Newfields, and the historic Lilly House along with opportunities to purchase discounted tickets to many special programs. Pediatric Anesthesiology fellow Dan Germeroth appreciated the chance to sign up for a Newfields membership and spend time with his family and colleagues. “This was a great event and a great opportunity to get together with other residents and fellows outside of work! The free membership to Newfields is going to be great. My family and I are planning to use it very often,” Germeroth said.
Daniel Germeroth, PGY-5 Pediatric Anesthesiology fellow, attended the Newfields welcome event with his family.
House Staff Forum and Newfields hope the program will benefit residents and fellows related to their physical, mental, and emotional well-being. “Self-wellness is extremely important today, with increasing demands placed on physicians, not only for yourself but for those under your care. The Newfields Membership Program allows for an extremely accessible way to explore various types of indoor and outdoor wellness opportunities throughout the year, which can be enjoyed by yourself or with family and friends,” Agrawal said. Evans recommends residents and fellows sign up for memberships to take advantage of the various walking and hiking trails available on the Newfields campus in addition to opportunities to appreciate art and spend time with friends and family.
Interested in learning more about Newfields? Visit https://discovernewfields.org/. Current IUSM residents and fellows interested in learning more about the membership program should email houstaff@iu.edu.
