COVID-19 Blog Articles

"As we navigate uncharted territory and the evolving realities of COVID-19, we may experience potential fear, stress and anxiety due to the overwhelming volume of information and the demands being put in place to combat the spread and risk of infection.

Anxiety is highly common and is often triggered by specific events, trauma or stressful scenarios creating challenges in our daily activities and interactions. Stress results from normal reactions, where adjustments or a response is required, causing our mind and bodies to react with physical, mental or emotional actions"

"Could remote working be the new normal for work workplaces? We’re getting a taste of what that looks and feels like right now...  This article is all about the advantages of having a remote workforce, and the key factors employers and managers must consider for their virtual work environments to be successful."

Homewood Health has two articles attached below, one for employees and another for Managers.

Homewood Health has created  this handout as an aide to support yourself, other employees and family members as a result of the abundance of information available from the media and online related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

View the handout.

Homewood Health has put together a resource that outlines different symptoms of COVID-19 and the differences between self-monitoring, self-isolation and quarantine. 

"As cases of COVID-19 continue to rise globally and throughout Canada, many employers are reviewing operations and core functions to make decisions surrounding employee self-isolation or quarantine in an effort to limit the risk of infection and potential harm to employees and others."

We know that human connection is important to our overall wellness, as humans are innately social beings.  The rapid spread of COVID-19 has caused new measures to be put in place in Ontario, including physical distancing.  You can learn more about physical distancing and tips to keep you healthy and reduce the risk of infection on our Wellness@Work blog.

Navigating these uncertain times with the COVID-19 virus may cause you to experience feelings of anxiety, loneliness or stress.  Wellness@Work offers deep compassion to you at this challenging time and hope that some of these resources help you cope with stress or anxiety you may be experiencing.

Access to counselling is available to U of G employees 24 hours per day, seven days per week through the University's EFAP provider, Homewood Employee Health toll-free at 1-800-663-1142.

Please note that most wellness activities at the University have been cancelled until further notice.

The University of Guelph is providing regular updates and new information on the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) on the 2019 Novel Coronavirus Information web page.

Occupational Health and Wellness has provided links to articles with facts and general information about COVID-19 from Homewood Health:

Faculty and staff at U of G can help create a caring campus community by learning how to recognize, respond and refer students who may be in need of support. 

More Feet on the Ground has been developed by the Council of Ontario Universities, Brock University and the Centre for Innovation in Campus Mental Health as an educational resource to support campus community members to recognize, respond and refer students experiencing mental health issues on campus. 

On July 24 we recognize International Self-Care Day, as an opportunity to celebrate the important role self-care plays in maintaining positive mental and physical health.  

Self-care is not a luxury, but a necessity in our everyday lives.  Taking time for ourselves and developing new strategies to enhance our own mental and physical health is an important component to our overall wellness.  Often when we get busy, our basic self-care strategies are forgotten.