MINDFULNESS
for Health-Care & Other Professionals:
An 8-week Immersion in Self-care
Dr. John Lovas
Thursday Evenings, 5:30 – 8:00 pm early October – November each year
Faculty of Dentistry, Dalhousie University
Halifax, NS, Canada
Course Synopsis
Working
in health care, other professions, and life in general, is very
stressful at times. Yet to truly enjoy life, and best serve our
patients, clients, coworkers, families and society, we ourselves need to
be healthy. Effective, regular self-care is not only sensible, but also
a professional responsibility. Mindfulness – a universal, but
underdeveloped way of relating both realistically and kindly to
ourselves and the world – is becoming a well-recognized foundation of
self-care.
This
continuing education course is designed for health-care & other
professionals who spend an unhealthy portion of their life caring for
everyone but themselves. The course provides a unique opportunity to
learn about and experience a profoundly beneficial program of self-care
practices.
Not
simply a technique, mindfulness is a state of being “that emerges
through paying attention on purpose, in the present moment, and
nonjudgmentally to the unfolding of experience moment by moment.”
(Kabat-Zinn) Mindfulness training “increases awareness of thoughts,
emotions, and maladaptive ways of responding to stress, thereby helping
participants learn to cope with stress in healthier, more effective
ways.” (Bishop et al)
Course Objectives
Participants will learn and practice sitting meditation, walking meditation,
qi gong breathing, standing meditation, and partake (voluntary) in
discussions about integrating mindfulness into our professional and
private lives.
Intended audience: Dental, medical, legal & other professionals. You and your entire office are invited to engage
in a profoundly positive transformative learning experience. Attendance
is limited to 20.
Homework: Participants are encouraged to engage in up to 45 minutes
of daily practice at home. We derive from this ‘practice’ precisely what we
put into it.
John G.L. Lovas BSc, DDS, MSc, FRCD(C)
Dr.
Lovas obtained science and dental degrees from the University of
Toronto, and specialty training in oral pathology at the University of
Western Ontario. He’s served as chief examiner in oral pathology for the
Royal College of Dentists of Canada and as president of the Canadian
Academy of Oral Pathology. Dr. Lovas was full-time faculty at the
Faculty of Dentistry, Dalhousie University, teaching oral pathology
& oral medicine for 31 years, and served as Assistant Dean for
Student Affairs until his retirement in 2014. He obtained
teacher-training in Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction (MBSR) at UMass
Medical Center, the Omega Institute in New York, and the Rochester
Medical School. For over ten years Dr. Lovas has been leading
Mindfulness workshops for dental, dental hygiene, medical, law and other
students, practitioners and staff.
Course Schedule
5:30 – 6:00 pm Registration & Light Dinner
6:00 – 8:00 pm Thursday evenings. Please note that we will postpone any sessions that the majority cannot
attend (eg for inclement weather).
Participants are expected to attend at least 7 of the 8 sessions. Positive
group dynamics depend on consistent attendance and participation.
For registration, please contact:
CREDITS
16 hours of lecture
