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Mental Health and Wellness Services

The Department of Mental Health Services provides mental health and personal counseling services to all IU School of Medicine students, residents and fellows on every IU School of Medicine campus.

Contact the Department of Mental Health Services at 317-278-2383 or access the Mental Health Services learner portal


Additional resources

IU School of Medicine Ombuds Office

TimelyCare: Free virtual mental health support for IU students, including:

  • 24/7, on-demand emotional support for concerns such as anxiety, relationships, depression, or any stressors
  • Scheduled counseling
  • Psychiatry
  • Health coaching
  • Self-care content
  • Peer community

ULifeline: Online resource for college mental health

Go to the Department of Mental Health Services

Access Emergency Help

To access emergency services, go to the nearest emergency room or call 911.

For additional 24-hour support, IU School of Medicine learners can call the Mental Health Crisis Line: 317-278-HELP (4357)

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 988 or 800-273-8255

Find additional crisis resources.

Wellness Resources

Indiana University School of Medicine offers an integrated four-year wellness and personal development experience with curricular and co-curricular opportunities at all nine campuses. This comprehensive wellness program trains medical students to develop the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and behaviors to maintain their own wellness throughout the lifetime of their career.

Not sure where to begin? Take this survey to see which dimension of wellness you may need to address.

To request time away for an appointment or self-care under four hours, contact your clerkship or elective leadership along with your faculty/residents. If you need to request time away beyond four hours, fill out the time away request form and contact your clerkship or elective leadership and faculty/residents.

You may also review the Time Away policy.

IU School of Medicine offers the Well-Being Index to all students as a personalized tool to improve individual wellness.

What is the Well-Being Index?

The Well-Being Index (WBI) is an anonymous, five-minute online self-assessment that provides immediate, individualized feedback, including tools as well as local and national resources to address personal well-being. The WBI is based upon validated research conducted by the Mayo Clinic and is currently used by residents and physicians across the country.

Why should I use the Well-Being Index?

Your WBI results will help you with your awareness and management of personal wellness. Additionally, the anonymous aggregate results will help the school improve its wellness culture and programming as well as plan for high-stress times in the curriculum.

Take five minutes to assess your wellness

Enter invite code IUSM STUDENT

IU School of Medicine is committed to supporting your mental health and well-being as you navigate through your academic and professional journey. As an IU School of Medicine learner, you have access to Headspace to help aid you in maintaining your overall health and wellness. Read more about Headspace and the app.

The Department of Mental Health Services is incredibly excited to share our monthly podcast with all IU School of Medicine trainees, faculty, and staff! Our podcast is entitled Well Beings: Strategies for Surviving and Thriving at the School of Medicine and Beyond, and we release one new episode each month. Episodes take short, in-depth dives into all aspects of caring for yourself. Listen on Spotify today!

Students who are located on the Indianapolis campus, or who rotate there, may have access to the fitness center in the Daly basement using their Crimson Card. IU School of Medicine partners with IU Health to offer free access to this limited fitness center which includes free weights, cardio machines, and other training equipment. Any undergraduate medical education student who wishes to gain access must fill out this form.

Get Involved

Wellness Coalition

The Wellness Coalition works to create curricular and co-curricular wellness opportunities for IU School of Medicine students. The coalition is comprised of liaisons from all nine campuses and representatives from various student interest groups and organizations. There are vice presidents representing each dimension of wellness on the coalition, as well as a vice president of social media and communication, a vice president of curricular affairs, a secretary, a treasurer and a vice president of wellness (who works as the liaison to the Medical Student Council and administration).

The coalition sponsors several events throughout the year to connect students with activities that will help them to be well-rounded in their wellness. Each event will have at least one of the eight dimensions of wellness as its focus, helping students learn about and practice in IU School of Medicine’s eight dimensions of wellness model. Additionally, they work with faculty, staff, and administration to create programming for orientation, transitions courses, and professional development days.

See what we do!


Events

Check out upcoming events on IU School of Medicine’s events calendar.

Have a wellness event idea? Request Wellness Coalition support from Kristen Heath or funding for your event.


Contact

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Have suggestions or questions for the Wellness Coalition? Interested in joining the Wellness Coalition with your student group? Contact Kristen Heath for more information.

Education

The popular MBM elective for Phase 1 students at IU School of Medicine teaches medical students a variety of mindfulness exercises to promote overall well-being, stress management, empathy, self-awareness and self-care. MBM has been offered at IU since 2018 and the school continues to expand the number of trained facilitators across the state so that the elective can be offered to all medical students.

In this elective, students will:

  • Engage in a variety of well-being modalities including meditation, guided imagery, autogenic training, journal writing and movement and reflect on the ways these skills can be helpful personally and professionally.
  • Articulate the importance of self-awareness and self-care for personal health and well-being and the importance of maintaining a balance between the intellectual, emotional, physical, social and spiritual aspects of their lives.
  • Appreciate the value of an ongoing commitment to personal growth as fundamental to the practice of medicine.

Resources

For questions, contact Emily Walvoord