Created by patients, caregivers, staff, and providers, the Penn Medicine Listening Lab is a storytelling initiative embracing the power of listening as a form of care. The Listening Lab has designed a recording line, an immersive exhibit, and an online experience to create a welcoming environment for listening and sharing. The COVID-19 pandemic and calls for racial justice challenge us to listen and be present for one another in new ways. In response, the Lab has created a new section on its website entitled "Listening to COVID-19," where contributors can share a story by recording their voice or submitting their writing, which will appear on the website as a "virtual postcard."

Participants can provide support and resilience to patients, caregivers, and providers by sharing three to five sentences about a particular moment when inspirational listening occurred (such as a phrase or gesture of kindness that you encountered; an expression of gratitude for someone who listened; a short story of someone who made a difference in your day). Stories featured in the Listening Lab are incorporated into New Employee Orientation and Recruitment efforts; integrated into medical school and nursing education/training at the University of Pennsylvania, as well as Patient and Family Advisory Councils system-wide; shared during the beginning of leadership events, meetings, and staff huddles; highlighted in e-mail communication to all employees, including COVID-19 CEO Updates, PennTogether Wellness, and other resilience tools; featured on the Penn Medicine intranet, and promoted system-wide in all clinical rooms.

Aaron Levy's additional project is portrayed on our website and linked here.