WHISPER – SUPR – NAISS abstract Medical students in Uppsala report increasing levels of stress, anxiety, and low mood. There is also a growing number of newly graduated physicians who refrain from full-time work due to an unsustainable workload [1, 2]. Based on numerous reports of mental ill health among students, the Program Committee for Medical Education in Uppsala has decided to introduce an educational concept aimed at strengthening medical students’ mental health and resilience to stress during their studies, as well as contributing to better conditions for managing future work-related challenges, such as difficult patient encounters, demanding workloads, and high expectations regarding both medical competence and personal maturity. It is therefore an initiative with a long-term perspective, promoting a sustainable student life and professional career. The educational concept has been named Sustainable Student – Sustainable Physician and has been implemented across all semesters of the medical program starting in autumn 2024. The pedagogical foundation of the project rests on three pillars: student activation, peer learning, and gradual progression. These are described in more detail below. Sustainable Student – Sustainable Physician will consist of a longitudinal strand running throughout the entire medical program, from the first week of semester 1 to the final week of semester 12. The project contributes to educational innovation by incorporating current knowledge about students’ mental health together with concrete, evidence-based psychological methods drawn from cognitive behavioural therapy [3]. Through the student bridge between semester 12 and semester 1 (see point 6), a unique opportunity is created for senior students to pass on their accumulated knowledge. The role-model function that an older student provides for a younger student serves as an inspiring vision for first-semester students. It becomes a symbolic manifestation of the apprenticeship-like character of the medical profession—we learn from one another through words and actions. In this way, the project may contribute to the sustainable development of healthcare as a whole. The project is being evaluated according to a research plan approved by the Ethical Vetting Authority in Sweden (nr. 2024-08522-01), with Prof. Anne H. Berman as PI and co-PI’s Prof. Mia Ramklint and Dr. Johan Bengtsson. 1. Dahlin M, Joneborg N,Runeson B. Stress and depression among medical students: a cross-sectional study. Med Educ. 2005;39:594-604 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2929.2005.02176.x 2. Bexelius T, Lachmann H, Järnbert-Pettersson H, et al. Stress among medical students during clinical courses: a longitudinal study using contextual activity sampling system. Int J Med Educ. 2019;10:68-74 https://doi.org/10.5116/ijme.5c94.9391 3. Zhang CQ, Leeming E, Smith P, et al. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Health Behavior Change: A Contextually-Driven Approach. Front Psychol. 2017;8:2350 https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.02350