UPMC Williamsport - Family Medicine Residency - Chopped Challenge February 23, 2024 

I would like to express a sincere thank you to POMA for the Resident Wellness Grant.

On February 23, 2024, coinciding with Thank a Resident Day, the UPMC Williamsport Family Medicine Residency participated in a teambuilding Chopped Challenge.  Teams split up to cook in faculty kitchens to wow the judges with their use of the mystery ingredients – cauliflower, beets, basil, and peanut butter and jelly “Uncrustables” – and wow they did!  Our judges were floored with the creativity, presentation, and taste of the dishes created with the mystery ingredients, but more importantly, the residents and faculty enjoyed a fun afternoon together.

We appreciate your generosity and support of resident wellness,

Dana Kirschner, DO

Program Director, UPMC Williamsport Family Medicine Residency

Outcomes Questions

1. What was the general understanding of the purpose of the project/program by participants?

The general understanding of the Chopped Challenge was to have a fun food-based competition among residents and faculty.

2. Why did you choose the specific wellness project/activity?

Years ago, the residency participated in a cooking class together at a local culinary school.  This was a lot of fun and well-received, but we were unable to replicate this day due to the school’s lack of availability of teaching kitchens during the weekdays.  We chose the Chopped Challenge after considering other ways to incorporate cooking in teams in smaller, individual kitchens.

3. During the project/program, what tangible tools or strategies were demonstrated or taught to address wellness and life balance?

The most tangible tool was the ability to step away from work for an afternoon.  We also encouraged whole-food-plant-based meals with bonus points for scoring to emphasize our Lifestyle Medicine Curriculum.

4. What do you intend to do, upon returning to work, that you learned and practiced during the activity, that will improve your response to stressful situations?

We asked this question to the groups while cooking and overwhelmingly the answer was to depend on your team and ask for help.  Additionally, we plan to hold a debriefing session with the teams to ask questions about group decision making and communication.

5. What can POMA do to address wellness and life balance for your future?

Offering financial support for these events was very helpful.  Everyone agrees that wellness is important, but finding ways to provide time away from the clinic is challenging, as is the cost of the event.  Having the financial support eased the ask for our institution.