31 August 2021

Healthier studying, teaching and research. This is the joint goal of Nordhausen University of Applied Sciences and TK. Both partners are now jointly committed to holistic university health management (HGM).

Nordhausen (HSPN) Erfurt, 31 August 2021. Nordhausen University of Applied Sciences is establishing a holistic university health management programme (HGM) together with the health insurance company Techniker Krankenkasse (TK). From 1 September 2021, the university and TK will work together intensively for three years to make both studying and working at Nordhausen University of Applied Sciences more health-promoting in the long term.

"In the competition for students and qualified staff, it is crucial to create conditions that make the university a healthy place to work and learn. With the support of Techniker Krankenkasse, Nordhausen University of Applied Sciences will set the necessary course in the coming years to raise its profile as a health-conscious university and promote the well-being of its members in the long term," emphasises Jan Funke, Chancellor of Nordhausen University of Applied Sciences.

The aim is to develop sustainable, needs-based measures for students and university staff.

"Together, we want to create optimal framework conditions so that everyone working at the university can do more for their own health," says Alexander Hesse, university counsellor at TK. "This means that we are building structures in Nordhausen that are precisely tailored to the needs of the university. This can be something completely different to what we offer at other universities."

Appropriate measures for constantly changing requirements

The first step is to work with students and employees to determine which specific stress factors characterise everyday university life in Nordhausen and which aspects of health promotion could be particularly helpful. This is done, for example, by means of surveys and focus group interviews.

The measures derived from this are then offered in health courses, seminars or health days, among other things. At the same time, it is essential to establish suitable structures and processes that favour healthy studying, working and research in the long term.

The everyday work and study life of many university members is currently characterised by the switch to partially digital teaching, changes to administrative processes and rising student numbers. In addition, the increasingly complex, constantly changing world is also reflected in the university.

"That's why university health management must always be about strengthening the health skills of students and employees so that they are even more able to take responsibility for their own health," says Hesse.

In addition to the traditional health promotion fields of nutrition and exercise, mental health, such as resilience and the ability to deal constructively with change, is playing an increasingly important role.