The Taking Care of Our Own Program

What is the Taking Care of Our Own Program?

The Taking of Our Own Program (TCOOO) is a service offered to all physicians and housestaff at the UNC Medical Center who would benefit from convenient and confidential expertise in wellness and mental health. We also provide educational services for departments or divisions within the School of Medicine.

As a physician, your physical and emotional health may end up as a secondary priority to the health of your patients, family, and friends. TCOOO was created to encourage health and wellness in those that heal others. We are a group of mental health clinicians who meet individually with you to assess any unique factors which may contribute to symptoms of stress, mood changes, anxiety, and burnout. We can help you to cope with these common issues which may be impacting your professional journey as a physician.

Please click on the appropriate box below to learn more about how we can meet your specific wellness needs.

To request an individual appointment with one of our TCOOO providers or to request a referral for care, please complete the TCOOO Intake Form.

**If this is an emergency please call 911.** If you need non-emergent immediate assistance please call one of the helplines below:

UNC Healing Heroes Helpline

The UNC Healing Heroes Helpline (H3) provides free, confidential emotional support to all UNC Health professionals statewide.

If you would like to be connected with a licensed mental health professional, please call (984) 215-5655 to schedule a time to speak with someone over the phone. Most callers will have the opportunity to speak with a mental health professional same day.

Incoming calls will be directed to an administrative coordinator who will be able to answer questions and schedule a phone call with a licensed clinician. In a scheduled call, clinicians will provide short-term emotional support and resources to callers. In cases where a caller may benefit from therapy or another resource, clinicians are able provide referrals.

Hope4Healers

The DHHS Hope4Healers Helpline is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week at (919) 226-2002. You will be contacted quickly by a licensed mental health professional for follow-up.

Please complete the Group Support Request form to request a formal group support session, presentation, or panel discussion by one of our team members.

Healing Heroes Helpline (H3) is a support line available from 8 a.m. -7 p.m. Monday-Friday that offers supportive listening, skills-based consultation, access to compiled resources, a connection to confidential faculty run support groups, or a direct referral for best fit therapy. Call H3 at (984) 215-5655 and a mental health provider will call back the same day or at a day and time requested by caller if they cannot pick up immediately. The service is confidential and provides private and no cost access to mental health professionals.

What does TCOOO offer?

We provide education, support, advice, and if appropriate, professional referral for individual mental or physical help that meets your needs.
We offer multiple different forms of mental health treatment that include evidence based therapies for burnout, depression and anxiety, and have developed a comprehensive referral base of providers who have experience caring for physicians.
We work directly with each clinical department and division to implement educational programs with customized material for each clinical specialty, as the demands and stressors vary among the diverse fields of medicine.
We work with medical training directors and other faculty to make necessary changes that greatly increase the odds that a training physician will be successful in their program.