Free mobile App offers meditations as ‘antidote’ for stressed

healthcare professionals and carers.

 

To watch a short 10 minute video of the Happidote launch – click here 

 

Lovely flute music welcomed guests to Global Cooperation House in November 2019 when Dr Sarah Eagger, Chair, introduced Janki Foundation’s (JF) innovative App, Happidote. The App (think ‘happy antidote’!) has been designed to support healthcare professionals and carers to cope with daily challenges at work. With a few simple swipes or touches, it offers an easy way to access practical advice through simple guided meditations to help calm the mind and soothe the stress of work.

Sarah outlined the context and the background to Happidote and presented the team who had created the content, artwork, design and narration of the meditations.

Working with sick people is rewarding but requires emotional labour so it’s no wonder 40% of staff suffer from work-related stress for which there is little or no support in the NHS. That’s why Happidote was created, to help support people with this in mind and to be used when most needed by those who need it most.  In the form of short meditations – antidotes to stress – the App helps people stay calm and centred especially while at work.

Dharshi Thiruchelvam technical designer of the App, explained how Happidote has 10 different scenarios to address the question ‘How am I feeling?’ – different emotional states such as, for example, feeling overworked or bullied and harassed, or the strain of having to break bad news-which are then coupled with an antidote, in the form of a short meditation.  Additionally, there are three core meditations: Breathe and Relax, Settling into my Inner core of Peace and Connecting to The Source.  The App also features a ‘Value Scope’, which allows you to ‘spin’ the wheel of virtues. The one you land on can be used to help sustain you through the day.

Dr Rachna Chowla recited a poem (see below – the poem is due to appear in upcoming NHS anthology of poems) she had written and explained how burnout is a big issue amongst her GP colleagues and many others working in the front line. Compassion for one’s self as well as patients is required and the App provides a caring way to do this.

 

 

 

Professionals from different health backgrounds—nurses, doctors and therapists- who contributed in the creation of the App then took the stage and shared how helpful they felt the App was in their day-to-day work.

Sister Jayanti was invited to share why this sort of support is so needed in the world of healthcare today. “You have your finger on the pulse of what humankind is going through at the moment and what challenges it faces”, she said to the guests, “but how do we care for those who are truly caring for others?” Sister Jayanti declared how she could see the App was very timely, useful and valuable for everyone working in healthcare. “Taking just a minute to recharge our inner battery, we can return to our inner space of sanctity and well-being”. Sister Jayanti ended the evening with a meditation commentary and Bhavna Patani, JF Secretary, thanked everyone for their ‘labour of love’ in helping create the App.

 

The App available is free of charge from :   

 

For Full report of the Launch of Happidote  Click Here 

For more details on Happidote visit – www.jankifoundation.org/happidote

 

‘Stop before crying…..back to clicking’ by Dr Rachna Chowla

To appear in upcoming NHS anthology of poems

And I finally stood and stopped

After a day of running, whilst sitting

Made of all the sunlit hours and more

Computer not working, running late before starting

Listening, clicking, caring, clicking, listening, examining, caring, helping

Clicking, did I say clicking? Well then more clicking…

Reading, listening, investigating, clicking, looking, caring, thinking (fast, never slow), caring, phoning, clicking, finding, looking (hard, rarely easy), prescribing, clicking, holding hands (too brief, come back?), printing, computer now slow working (to me hinting?)

No time left for slowing, clickety-click-clicking

Clicking, clicking

Home visiting, answering, doing, forgot, now peeing

Not stopping, meeting, some laughing, relieving, more to do, talking, meeting, eating, more letters reading, scripts prescribing

Triaging, supervising, nurturing (moments please stay?), reassuring, clicking

No time left, turn up the rushing, machining, machining, but is that listening, is that caring?  Doing the clicking, clicking, clicking?

What Am I? Clicking? Clicking? Clicking?

4 minutes left to finishing

Too much left…Can’t, can’t 

Leave it, leave it

It will be there waiting (with more in waiting)

Day in day out, day out day in

Tick tock tick tock

Whose clock? Whose clock?

7.30pm locking

Leaving leaving, at last leaving!

And the day suddenly stopping

When I finally stood still and started crying.