About Blue Zone

Establishment of the
Blue Zone Team

The Blue Zone team was established in 2017 to address the challenge of building community and advancing wellness in our large, multidisciplinary, and geographically dispersed department. The name "Blue Zone" is borrowed from author Dan Buettner, who used it to describe the five regions in the world where people have the highest levels of longevity. Our goal is to make the Department of Radiology our own "Blue Zone" that promotes work-life balance and well being for all staff.

Current Programs

CRE&TE Program

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we realigned our mission to establish creative ways to help our staff, many of whom were/still are working remotely, to remain "Together Apart" - a term coined by Priya Parker, author of "The Art of Gathering" and host of the New York Times Together Apart podcast. The CHOP Radiology Experience and Teaching Exchange (CRE&TE) program invites individuals from a number of roles across Radiology to host free classes for staff to learn new skills while also connecting with their colleagues. You can view our current CRE&TE classes here.

Wellness Talks

Our monthly Wellness Talks (now being held virtually) invite guests to speak on a variety of topics related to well-being. Past talks have included presentations focused on exercise, nutrition, burnout, and peak performance. See our upcoming schedule of talks here and view recordings of past talks here.

Walk in My Shoes:
Student Program

Our team created the Walk in My Shoes program to give Radiology staff the chance to shadow their colleagues in their respective roles. The goal of this program was to show how different positions in the Department of Radiology relate to each other and to provide first-hand experience to understand what each role entails, fostering a new appreciation for our colleagues. This was expanded to a program aimed at giving K-12 students the opportunity to learn what it is like to work in Radiology.

R34C

We are proud partners with the Radiology Runners and Riders 4 Charity (R34C) team, who participate in a variety of local charity events to connect with colleagues while raising money for great causes.