University Health Management

Within the framework of university health promotion, the University of Erfurt would like to sensitize employees and students to the topic of "health" at the annual Health Day, draw attention to existing offers at the university and initiate new initiatives.

The 8th Health Day will take place on May 16, 2024 under the motto "Addiction vs. Health".

With its campus run, the University of Erfurt is adding another attractive competition to the Thuringian running calendar. Together with the Universitätssportverein Erfurt e.V., the university invites running enthusiasts to compete in the ten-kilometer course for individual runners and the 5 x 2-kilometer team run on campus.

The 8th campus run will take place on June 26, 2024.

Campus Run website (in German only)

The University Sports programme at USV Erfurt includes various courses which are suitable for employees and  specially tailored to their interests. The complete overview and the link to enrolment can be found on the University Sports Club pages (German only).

Every year in the fall, the University of Erfurt offers its students and employees the opportunity to receive a flu vaccination. Booster vaccinations for tetanus and TBE may also be available. COVID-19 vaccinations were also offered in the fall of 2022.

Dates for vaccinations and registration procedures will be posted here, in the News, and on the University Events Calendar.

The University Health Management organizes an annual health week in the winter semester. Within this week, various mental health workshops and sports courses are offered. The health weeks are aimed at the entire university public. The date for this year will be announced in time via the news bulletin.

Information on the Health Week will be published here.

At the University of Erfurt, the University Health Management, the Student Council and various university groups have been committed to the issue of cycling and walking for several years. University members actively participate in the "Cycle to work" and "City cycling for a climate-friendly city center" campaigns. University Health Management organizes an annual cycling action day and the administration's walking day with various partners. The University of Erfurt signed the "Thuringian Charter for Cycling and Walking" in 2023.  

Cycling and walking at the university

Increased learning workloads, tight schedules, more and more networking, increasing complexity - we are all constantly experiencing everyday stress. At the University of Erfurt there is a retreat room that is open to all members of the university who are looking for peace and relaxation, want to meditate or say a prayer. It can be used by anyone who values silence. This room is accessible during the opening hours of teaching building 2 (Mo-Fri, 8 a.m.-7 p.m.). It is located in the basement and is a place to relax, pray and meditate. The room is equipped with meditation mats, cushions and benches.

instructions for use

"Mindfulness involves being aware in a certain way: conscious, in the present moment and without judgment. Based on this basic attitude, the American professor of medicine and molecular biologist Jon Kabat-Zinn developed the secular training format Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) at Massachusetts University Hospital in 1979. As part of the Thuringian Mindfulness Universities model, this was adapted to the special needs of universities in the period from 2015 to 2019 by means of target group-specific training formats.

The resulting supra-regional cooperation platform Mindful Universities researches the effects of mindfulness and meditation in a changing, digitalised university landscape. More than 300 university members from Germany, Austria and Switzerland participate in the platform (as of 2020). At European level, the cooperation platform is active in the Erasmus + Programme Training Embodied Critical Thinking (2020-2023).

The aim is to clarify how target group-specific mindfulness training can improve the ability to deal with disruptive transformation processes (digitisation, globalisation, corona and climate crisis, etc.) in a prudent, sustainable and socially balanced way and strengthen the motivation to promote salutogenic personal development at universities.

In a first step, a conceptual framework for establishing the supra-regional cooperation platform Mindful Universities was created based on the findings of the Thuringian model Mindful Universities (2015-2019). This was tested and further developed in three working meetings in 2018 and 2019. In a second step, a systematic inventory analysis of existing mindfulness practices at universities in Germany will be conducted on the basis of the current state of international mindfulness, transformation and digitisation research. The third step will be the evidence-based further development of mindfulness training in the areas of teaching/learning, leadership/management and administration/service provision at selected universities in Bavaria, Hesse, Lower Saxony, Saxony and Thuringia, among others.

The contact person for the project at the University of Erfurt is Dr. Birgit Jäpelt. Within the framework of the project, she offers regular meditations ("laboratory on a seat cushion"), but also systemic counselling.

Offers for employees

Operational reintegration management

The University of Erfurt has set itself the task of protecting, maintaining and helping to restore the health of its employees. Accordingly, in the sense of the legal regulation of § 167 Para. 2 SGB IX, all employees who have been unfit for work for more than six weeks continuously or repeatedly are offered a company integration management. The aim is to jointly find the best way to prevent a possible health- or disability-related exclusion from the employment process at an early stage.

Based on the current framework inclusion agreement (as of 09.10.2018), Department 2: Human Resources, in cooperation with the Staff Council and the Disabled Persons' Representative Council, offers appropriate counselling to clarify how, among other things, re-entry into working life can be supported and renewed incapacity for work can be prevented.

Flyer BEM(only in German)

Contact persons for further questions can be found at: www.uni-erfurt.de/interner-service/service/persoenliches/arbeitsunfaehigkeit-/-bem-/-unfaelle.

Yoga for employees

Yoga exercises can help the practitioner to harmonize life, awaken dormant abilities and unite with true self-awareness. Common practice of body positions (asanas), breathing exercises (pranayama) as well as relaxation exercises are on the program for beginners and advanced students at the USV Erfurt lunchtime class, which takes place every Tuesday from 12 to 1 p.m. in the UGM room (former checkroom under the Audimax). Exercise instructor Gudrun Hoch teaches a dynamic yoga (Hata). The course can be taken all year round via membership in the yoga department of USV Erfurt (membership fee 60 euros per year). A trial training is possible. Interested parties can contact Jens Panse gesundheit@uni-erfurt.de.

Those who would like to use the course must sign out with their thoska for this time and clarify with their supervisor(s) that no urgent work tasks stand in the way.

Aktive Pause (Active Break)

The "Active Break" is an individual, varied short programme (30 minutes) of relaxation, mobilization and exercise, which is offered as part of the University Health Management in cooperation with the University Sports Club (USV).

The sports program is carried out by qualified trainers who use a wide variety of small equipment (dumbbells, Thera-bands, balls, etc.) to actively promote health. The small group size means that trainers can easily cater to individual needs. The "active break" not only serves to improve general well-being and reduce tension, but also ensures a positive body image. The advantage is that participants do not have to change location or change clothes. The mind is "free" again and participants can go back to work with renewed energy.

With the support of our health partner AOK PLUS, free use is still guaranteed. Our exercise instructor Susanne Wolter will work with you to perform exercises to improve strength and flexibility as well as stretching and relaxation exercises so that you can get back to work with renewed energy. New registrations via Moodle are possible at any time. Registration key: Aktive_Pause

Moodle

Table tennis during lunch break

"Ping-Pong" during the lunch break - every Thursday from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. the UGM offers this form of "active break". At two table tennis tables in the checkroom under the Audimax building, you can play singles, doubles, or Chinese while engaging in conversation with your colleagues. As with the "active break", half an hour is deducted from the working time. Anyone wishing to take advantage of the offer for longer must sign off for this time with his/her thoska and clarify with his/her supervisor that no urgent work tasks stand in the way.

Registration via Moodle (Key: Tischtennis_Mittagspause)

Individual back training for physically active employees

Prevention is better than cure. The widespread disease "back pain" can be prevented by specific exercises. This special back school is carried out with the support of the AOK PLUS and the USV Erfurt in the gymnastics and fitness room of the sports hall. The next date will be announced here in good time.

Electrically height-adjustable desk

The University of Erfurt attaches great importance to ergonomically designed workplaces that are beneficial to health. Therefore, for some time now, the purchase of electrically height-adjustable desks has been financially supported from central funds. You can find more information on the pages of Department 5.

Mobile physiotherapy/massage

Many people complain about physical problems and limitations, but these can be easily compensated and limited by taking breaks with targeted relaxation and relief of the muscles that are strained on a daily basis and through regular treatments. As soon as physiotherapists are available again for the university, we will inform you here.

Offerings for students

Helpline

In times of Corona and distance learning, studying is not easy for many. Against this backdrop, the University of Erfurt is now setting up a worry line for students, which will begin its work in the summer semester.

At the hotline, students advise their fellow students on problems and psychological stress related to their studies, listen to them and refer them to further support services.

The hotline can be reached at 0361/30252964 - please note the "operating times". At times when the phone is not busy or another call is in progress, there is a recorded message with the necessary information.

Mental Well-being on Campus

Together with the association Irsinnig Menschlich e.V., the health management invites you to an exciting exchange to get to the bottom of the topic 'mental health in studies'. You can expect no boring lecture, because this event is interactive! In addition, you will have the opportunity to meet people who have mastered mental health crises during their studies and who will provide you with valuable tips.

The online forum takes place at regular intervals. You can find out when the next forum is scheduled by checking the news. 

The steering group "Health Promotion" was established by a resolution of the Executive Board in March 2015. In addition to the Chancellor, its members include employees from various areas of the administration, the Equal Opportunity and Family Office, the GENIA network, as well as colleagues from the departments, the Staff Council, the Student Council, University Sports and the Student Union, those responsible for occupational health and safety, and the company doctor. It meets twice a semester for consultations. The work is coordinated by the representative for university health promotion and supported by the project partner AOK PLUS.

The main tasks of the steering committee are:

• Coordination of the cooperation project "University Health Management" with the AOK PLUS
• Forum for exchange, discussion and cooperation
• Feedback on the status of ongoing activities
• Formulation of short, medium and long-term goals in the area of health promotion at the university
• Development of recommendations for the university management
• Implementation of projects on the level of working groups with the involvement of other actors

The working group "Health Promotion Projects" meets regularly to prepare various projects, such as the "Active Break", the Thuringian Health Week or the Health Day.

The working group "Mental Health" is specifically dedicated to developing and organizing mental health services for the entire university community. 

In our Campus-Blog "I like my university ..." we introduce the university group in more detail. (in German only)

www.usv-erfurt.de

Health communication as an interdisciplinary field of research deals with this very tension and addresses the social and psychological conditions, meanings, and consequences of health-related and health-relevant, intended and unintended, intrapersonal, interpersonal, media, and public communication. This interdisciplinary master's program is dedicated to the theory and practice of evidence-informed health communication.

At the same time, students and teachers from the master's program also support health promotion at the University of Erfurt - with studies, actions and information on the topic of health.

further information on the programme

The Thuringian Student Services Organisation also supports the University of Erfurt in company or student health management - whether with healthy cuisine, in organising events within the framework of the "Healthy University" or in special problem situations with psychosocial counselling.

The University of Erfurt has appointed the first 25 health ambassadors for the start of the summer semester 2021. They are to help communicate the health promotion offers and act as contact persons in their respective areas. They also actively participate in events and focus group workshops. Would you like to support our health team at the University of Erfurt? Then please contact the University Health Management by e-mail: gesundhe​​​​​​​it@uni-erfurt.de.

General Information

The consequences of excessive consumption of alcohol are often underestimated in German society, but cause restrictions in mental, physical and social well-being. Regular consumption of alcohol and other addictive substances endangers mental and physical health. The negative consequences not only affect the person concerned, but also the private and company environment.
As part of the University of Erfurt's duty of care as an employer, comprehensive information is provided to prevent the development of addictive disorders and to motivate a responsible approach to addictive substances.
The working group for addiction prevention and addiction support helps employees with addiction to overcome their addiction and reintegrate into everyday working life. In addition, the members are contact persons for managers and employees who have colleagues in their working environment whose behavior may indicate an addiction problem. 
If necessary, you can arrange a personal meeting with the addiction representative Babette Udhardt. All discussions are, of course, conducted in strict confidence.

Working and Legal Basis

Framework service agreement on addiction prevention and addiction treatment (only in german)

What should be done in the specific case?

Guide to action for managers
In case of acute alcoholization, restriction of the ability to work or change in behavior (e.g. decreasing concentration and performance, irresponsibility, carelessness, nervousness, mood swings, smell of alcohol, unsteadiness of gait, slurred speech) due to intoxicating substances:

• Discreetly address the employee without blame or accusation
• Employees who are obviously under the influence of addictive substances are to be expelled from the workplace, with the involvement of another witness person
• There is no entitlement to remuneration for the working time not performed
• Employees may voluntarily undergo an immediate test for the use of addictive substances as proof of the contrary (costs will be borne by the employer)
• Employee:in to be informed that he/she is unfit to drive and to organize transportation home (costs to be borne by the employee)
• Written documentation of the incident
• Conduct a precautionary interview and proceed according to the intervention chain

Contact

Babette Udhardt
Addiction Officer

phone: 0361/737-5842
sucht@uni-erfurt.de

Interventions Team

Babette Udhardt (Addiction Officer)
sucht@uni-erfurt.de

Jens Panse (University Health Managment)
gesundheit@uni-erfurt.de

Nadine Pippus-Wehlisch (Department 2: Human Ressources)
nadine.pippus-wehlisch@uni-erfurt.de

Andrea Scholz
andrea.scholz@uni-erfurt.de

Dr. Martin Wolf (company doctor)
m.wolf@medical-gmbh.de

Help and Advice in Erfurt

Sucht- und Drogenhilfezentrum in Trägerschaft der SiT - Suchthilfe in Thüringen Beratungs- und Behandlungsstelle für Suchtkranke und ihre Angehörigen
Liebknechtstraße 19, 99085 Erfurt
Tel.: 0361 5667857
E-Mail: psbs-erfurt@)sit-online.org
https://sit-online.org/suchthilfe-aus-einer-hand/psychosoziale-beratungsstellen/psychosoziale-beratungsstelle-erfurt

Suchthilfe in Thüringen – SiT Drogenhilfe Knackpunkt
Heinrichstraße 95, 99092 Erfurt
Tel.: 0361 228450
E-Mail: psbs-knackpunkt@sit-online.org
https://www.drogenhilfe-knackpunkt.de/startseite.html

Caritasregion Mittelthüringen Suchthilfe-Zentrum/Beratung und Behandlung Schulzenweg 13, 99097 Erfurt
Tel.: 0361 21658460
E-Mail: s13-ef@caritas-bistum-erfurt.de
https://www.caritas-bistum-erfurt.de/

Suchthilfezentrum
Michaelisstraße 14, 99084 Erfurt
Tel.: 0361 590370
E-Mail: shz-erfurt@arcor.de
http://stadtmission-erfurt.de/suchthilfezentrum