Mental Health Toolkit

In commemoration of Mental Health Awareness Month (MHAM) the Office of Human Resources has prepared a mental health toolkit with resources available to UHD employees. We encourage you to explore these resources and to contact us at hr@uhd.edu with any questions you may have. You are not alone; we are here for you!

• Take advantage of the resources available to you through the Deer Oaks Employee Assistance Program (EAP).
  • Eligible employees include full-time, benefits-eligible UHD employees; part-time (50% FTE or higher), benefits-eligible UHD employees; and dependents and household members of the aforementioned employees.
  • In addition to numerous financial wellness and work-life resources, Deer Oaks offers confidential short-term counseling for stress, anxiety, grief, marital/family challenges, relationship issues, addiction, etc.
  • Deer Oaks also offers referral and community resources to help you care for your pets, manage travel, manage day-to-day responsibilities at home and work, and more.
    
    
• Attend an upcoming event offered by the Office of Human Resources Benefits and Compensation team or one of UHD's trusted partners. MHAM events include:
  • Deer Oaks OnDemand Virtual Seminar: Balancing Act - Strategies for Mental Health
    Available on demand from the Deer Oaks homepage starting Tuesday, May 21
    
    
  • Gallagher's Women's Leadership Series: Managing Mental Health by Addressing Loneliness
    Wednesday, May 22, starting at 1:00p.m.
    Virtual (Registration required)
    
    
• Explore the Wellness and Success Center's group fitness schedule, healthy workshops, and other amenities as a way to include physical fitness into your own mental health toolkit.  
  
  
• HealthSelect of Texas and Consumer Directed HealthSelect of Texas participants can review their mental health benefits at-a-glance on BlueCross BlueShield's dedicated Mental Health Resources page.
  
  
• Support the National Alliance on Mentail Illness' (NAMI) effort to end stigma regarding mental health and mental illness by signing the pledge to be StigmaFree.
  
  
• Join us in recognizing MHAM by using #StigmaFreeUHD on LinkedIn throughout the month of May.

We are committed to fostering mental health and well-being all year long, so we will periodically update this page to reflect the resources available to UHD employees. We encourage you to bookmark this page for future reference!

Other Health and Well-being Resources

Fitness Release Time (FRT) is a program designed for full-time benefits eligible staff that allows a maximum of three (1.5) hours a week for participating in an exercise program and/or fitness activity offered in the UHD Student Life Center.

Fitness Programs are offered UHD staff, faculty and students. Programs include aerobics and strengthening classes as well as specialty classes such as Aikido, Hip Hop, Karate, Latin Dance, Pi-Yo, Pilates, Tai Chi and Yoga. View the complete schedule online.

Health & Fitness Workshops And Certifications are offered to UHD staff, faculty and students. Workshops and certifications cover such topics as CPR/AED and First Aid certifications, nutrition and exercise workshops.

Intramural Sports are available through Sports & Fitness to UHD staff, faculty, and students. Sports and include volleyball, flag football, bench press, badminton, bowling, soccer, softball, tennis and basketball.

Naturally Slim is an online program which helps you change how you eat instead of what you eat. Learn the skills to lose weight and keep it off forever while still eating your favorite foods. Plus, you will improve your health and reduce your chance of developing a serious, chronic disease, like diabetes or heart disease.
** Naturally Slim is available at no additional cost to employees, spouses, dependents 18 and older enrolled in the HealthSelect^SM of Texas and Consumer Directed HealthSelect^SM plans, who have BMI of 23 or higher.

Personal Trainers are available through Sports & Fitness at a cost of $35 for a one hour session for non-students.

The Real Appeal weight loss program is personalized just for you and fits into YOUR schedule for lasting results, fast!* You can get it all without turning your life upside down, without giving up the foods you love. Real Appeal gives you the tools, the information and the support you need to make smarter choices, day in and day out, to trulty transform yourself.
**Real Appeal is available at no additional cost to employees, spouses, dependents 18 and older enrolled in the HealthSelect^SM of Texas and Consumer Directed HealthSelect^SM plans, who have BMI of 23 or higher.

Student Health Services provides medical information and limited healthcare services at no or low cost to UHD faculty and staff.

Tobacco Cessation Programs Get help quitting tobacco. All health insurance plans available to State of Texas employees and retirees offer tobacco cessation programs as part of your overall wellness initiatives.

Benefits of quitting

• Improve your health
• Benefit from not having to pay the Tobacco User Premium
• Save money previously spent on tobacco products

UHD Bookstore is home to exclusive UHD clothing, new/used textbooks, school supplies, graduation regalia, magazines, snacks, and souvenirs. UHD employees receive a 10% discount on some purchases made at the bookstore upon presentation of a valid UHD ID card.

UHD Dining Services is located on the third floor and provides healthy dining options in a food court-like setting. They offer a large variety of dining options such as salads, daily specials, sushi, sandwiches, tacos, burritos, pizza, calzones, hamburgers, and french fries.

The University Of Houston-Downtown Wellness and Success Center features the following amenities, and discounted memberships are available for UHD employees:

• 75,000 square ft. facility
• Large weight training and cardio training areas with dramatic views of downtown Houston
• Indoor Functional Training Area
• Outdoor Functional Training Area
• Bouldering wall
• 3 exercise class studios
• Indoor Running Track
• 3 personal training and massage therapy rooms
• Demonstration Kitchen Room
• 3 courts for basketball/volleyball/badminton
• Large locker rooms

UHD Police Department provides comprehensive police services 24/7. All police officers are licensed by the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement Officer Standards and Education. They enforce federal, state and local laws in addition to penal provisions to the Texas Education Code as well as University regulations. Some of the services they offer are jump starts, unlocks, and police escort services.

The University Eye Institute at the University of Houston Central Campus offers services that range from complete vision exams to the medical and surgical management of eye disorders. Its nationally renowned vision professionals use advanced diagnostic instruments in over 80 exam rooms and 30 specialized testing areas. Faculty and staff receive fee reductions for primary examinations and optical materials.

University Of Houston Health Center provides medical services to UHD faculty and staff. Some of these services include physician visits, walk-in clinic services and pharmacy services. They also periodically offer free cholesterol and diabetes screenings, free HIV testing and various other screenings.

Virtual Visits allow participants to see and talk to a doctor in the virtual provider network from their mobile device or computer when they need non-emergency medical attention. No appointment or referral is needed. Virtual visits offer convenient, high-quality care when a patient's primary care physician is not available, when a patient becomes ill while traveling or as an alternative to the emergency room or urgent care clinic for non-emergency health problems.

These visits are covered as part of participants' health benefits when they use a provider in the virtual visit network. $0 copay per visit for In-Area participants.