UHS Affiliates with Mind/Body Medical Institute

University Health Services (UHS) has become the first university-based health care system to formally offer mind/body medicine. The new services result from a recent affiliation with the Mind/Body Medical Institute (M/BMI) at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston.

In joining 13 other affiliates across the United States, UHS has entered into a contract which provides training, consultation, and materials to a multidisciplinary staff who will run an on-campus medical symptom reduction program and Òhealthy lifestylesÓ program.

The programs will be available to all faculty, staff, students, retirees, and affiliates, regardless of their health plan.

A team of UHS providers, trained by M/BMI clinicians, will teach relaxation response techniques, which change the physical and emotional response to stress; cognitive behavioral strategies to enhance coping skills; appropriate exercise regimens; and nutrition management. The symptom reduction program will help patients better manage chronic illness, while the lifestyles program is focused on reducing stress through self-care.

UHS is a unique health care system which includes a hospital, a comprehensive health care facility with three satellite locations, and a health maintenance organization. According to UHS Director David Rosenthal, who will serve as medical director of the M/BMI affiliate, "We are quite pleased to add these services to those provided to our students, faculty, staff, and others in the community. I believe we are paving the way for a new level of progressive health care in a university environment."

Herbert Benson, founding president of the Mind/Body Medical Institute, associate professor of medicine at the Medical School, and chief of behavioral medicine at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, said, "With this affiliation, the M/BMI has also added another dimension to its already multifaceted relationship with Harvard University and Harvard Medical School. We are gratified that UHS has acknowledged the importance of offering mind/body medicine to its members."

The internationally recognized Mind/Body Medical Institute is a nonprofit and educational organization dedicated to promoting worldwide health through the study and advancement of mind/body medicine. Incorporated in 1988, the Institute evolved from Dr. Benson's pioneering work at the Medical School and its teaching hospitals.

After reviewing several different programs and research studies, UHS concluded that affiliation with M/BMI would complement the traditional clinical services they offer. Keli Ballinger, administrative/clinic director for the new M/BMI at UHS, confirmed, "We had been actively searching for programming that could supplement the work of our exemplary team of clinicians to enable UHS to deliver the most comprehensive, effective care possible."

"We were not looking for Ôalternatives,ÕÓ she added, Òbut services that are Ôcomplementary.Õ Ó

Benson elaborated: "At M/BMI, we see optimal health as a three-legged stool: one leg represents surgery, another pharmaceuticals, and the third, self-care, which enables individuals to manage their own medical conditions."

"Our affiliation with the Mind/Body Medical Institute helps actualize our mission, ÔTo Heal. To Care. To Educate,Õ Ó said Rosenthal. ÒBringing this work to the Harvard campus will substantially augment the comprehensive nature of the care we offer our

community."