Prescription for wellness: a wild GooseChase

Wellness activities for healthcare professionals can take many forms -- mental health support, mindfulness training and physical well-being programs. They can also be learning a TikTok dance, mixing your own hand sanitizer, practicing leg lunges and recreating a scene from “The Tiger King.”

This spring, a wellness initiative created by the USA Health internal medicine residency program, encouraged teams of residents and attending physicians to connect and relax by playing GooseChase, a virtual scavenger hunt that allows teams to compete by accomplishing tasks using the app.

The initiative, which received national recognition, helped USA Health residents cope with the isolation and social distancing of COVID-19 on top of their long hours and stress, said Judy Blair-Elortegui, M.D., internal medicine residency program director and associate professor of internal medicine and pediatrics at the USA College of Medicine.

“With COVID-19, we were able to switch to some online learning platforms to continue their education, but the social activities, where they could check in, went away,” said Blair-Elortegui, who serves as a wellness champion for USA Health’s Office of Graduate Medical Education. “It was isolating for residents to not be around their peers. We wanted to find a way to help everybody stay connected.”

Soon, four teams were created and ready to compete -- one for each year of residency and an attending physicians’ group called “Team Party Like It’s 1999.” Third- and fourth-year residents aptly named their group “Team Caffeine.”

“We learned how competitive some of the physicians are,” said Blair-Elortegui. “We had a group of attendings dance to ‘Staying Alive’ from ‘Saturday Night Fever.’ That one really hit a note and amped things up.”

In about 10 weeks, the teams accomplished 141 missions ranging from a Quarantine Haircut Challenge and Bollywood Dancing to Fencing with Pool Noodles. Players posted photos or videos to the GooseChase app as they went. The project widened to include the incoming residents and garnered a listing on the national COVID-19 Well-Being Idea Exchange of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education.

Second- year resident Justin Ellerman, M.D., earned 600 points for his team, “2 Legit 2 Quit,” by reenacting a Joe Exotic tune from “The Tiger King.”

Not to be outdone, Philip Almalouf, M.D., assistant professor of internal medicine, learned and performed the Renegade, one of the most popular TikTok dances to help the attendings team.

John Anaya, a second-year resident, was among the more enthusiastic players. “I sent in submissions for music challenges, an impersonation of Tom Hanks in ‘Cast Away’ calling out for Wilson, a workout instruction video (got bonus points for making Dr. Blair-Elortegui laugh) and a proposed reality TV series called ‘The Real Housewives of USA,’” he said. “It always served as a fun way to take a break in the middle of a tough day.”

Blair-Elortegui also added challenges that asked for photos of healthy eating, “What’s for Dinner?” mindfulness, “Porch Living,” and four-legged friends, “Pups in Paradise.”

First-year resident Sam Hall, M.D., landed 400 points for his team, the Intern Squad, by posting a video of himself juggling -- a skill he learned at age 12. “Sometimes you feel like you’re experiencing the same day over and over again. GooseChase adds spontaneity,” he said. “It has been very fun and entertaining.”

In the end, the second-year residents of “2 Legit 2 Quit” finished first, followed by the attending physicians of “Team Party Like It’s 1999.”

“We all can’t wait for the next one to start!” Anaya said.