Comments for The World of Pastoral and Spiritual care

Comment on Spiritual Support At The Hospital Is The Soul Of The Healthcare System by Pam Garrud

Pam Garrud — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 20:00:17 +0000

I’m a hospital chaplain and I really appreciate this article and I think it’s awesome.

However, as a patient, I also question whether spiritual care is a bolt-on extra to a physician who really listens to one’s problems? I remember finally having a very irritating and soul-draining malady (it went on for 18 months) solved by a doctor who actually took the time to listen to me. It wasn’t his concern that made the difference, but the fact that he took the time to understand that since the usual solutions to X weren’t working, maybe I didn’t actually have X and might have had Y instead.

To use the author’s bank analogy, wouldn’t it be better to have a bank that took the time to know its customers so that it didn’t give mortgages to people who couldn’t afford them?

I truly believe that the chaplain’s spiritual support is important to people. I’ve had any number of patients tell me so. I can also do great “service recovery.” But I also think that medical staff have to be more patient (hah! pun not originally intended) and have to learn to listen more carefully.

Comment on Is Distance Treatment the Wave of the Future? by Josh

Josh — Mon, 14 Jan 2013 13:46:51 +0000

I thoroughly agree that the treatment must be individualized with the client. If distance therapy would benefit the client then there should be full support for this modality. With the ubiquitous video cameras in smartphones, smart tvs, video gaming systems, tablets, laptops, and desktops, the video therapy is a superb choice for the busy lifestyle of today. The treatment, of course, must be empirically validated but a licensed professional (counselor, social worker, psychologist, marriage family therapist, etc…) is used to providing up to date interventions that work appropriately with the client. With the ever changing technology, the means to have user interface will only increase with the use of the internet and changes can be immediate with a major reduction in practitioner and client cost (i.e. printing, writing utensils, travel expenses, time off work, time away from family, etc…). Hopefully the insurance companies and licensing boards will give their nod to this worthwhile service. It’s all about client care, right? If the boards highly recommend, if not mandate, evening hours to make services available to all who desire services then distance therapy would meet these needs. Distance therapy would also improve safety for the practitioners and clients as evening hours, in some locations, can be very dangerous. The therapy could take place in the saftey of the practitioner and client’s own four walls.

Comment on Escape From Electronic Devices Enables Nature To Nurture Creativity by Escape From Electronic Devices Enables Nature To Nurture Creativity | Sisu Bento Box | Scoop.it

Thu, 10 Jan 2013 21:55:33 +0000

[...] The researchers decided on a decades-old test known as the Remote Associates Test, or RAT, that is a standard measuring tool for creative thinking and problem-solving. These abilities are believed to arise in the same … [...]

Comment on Prayer as Medicine for the Sick by rabbichaplain

rabbichaplain — Sun, 23 Dec 2012 12:37:14 +0000

You actually raise an interesting question. From a literal standpoint, I don’t think the text ever states explicitly that Miriam was healed. However, it is implied by the fact that the people journey after her seven days as being “leprous,” as well as the fact she doesn’t die for 38 more years, which is referenced some chapters later in Numbers. I hope that helps.

Comment on Prayer as Medicine for the Sick by Charles n Rutledge

Charles n Rutledge — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 19:58:54 +0000

Was Miriam healed? I can’t find it in my KJV. Is there something else in Hebrew Tradition? thx.

Comment on Let’s add science to health-care chaplaincy without losing its art by Josh Zlochower

Josh Zlochower — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 14:28:29 +0000

Great article! Thanks, Bryan!

Josh Zlochower

Comment on Vegetative patient Scott Routley says ‘I’m not in pain’ by Rabbi Cary Kozberg

Rabbi Cary Kozberg — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 11:49:34 +0000

Why is this person described as “vegetative”? Does he resemble or is he behaving like a broccoli, a carrot, a cauliflower? A person is a person, not a vegetable.
A website dedicated to chaplaincy and spiritual care should know better than to use the “V-word”, which compromises a person’s humanity.
Shame!!!

Comment on Death in Genesis – a hidden blessing by NancyO

NancyO — Sat, 27 Oct 2012 10:19:37 +0000

While death gives us the perspective of time, time only exists in this dimension. Death however, invites eternity.

Comment on Ban the Phrase “Do Everything”: It’s Dangerous Nonsense by Virginia Carreiro, M.A., Board Certified Chaplain Emeritus

Virginia Carreiro, M.A., Board Certified Chaplain Emeritus — Fri, 05 Oct 2012 18:46:45 +0000

Sometimes in the acute care hospital,doctors take pride in their ability to “do everything.” “Then, their practice becomes limited to all the diagnostics, all the treatment plans, all the miracle drugs in their medical armamentarium, as well as every technology available. As a health care chaplain, I reframe the “everything” of the medical modality. I describe “do everything” to include all the love and care, all the attentive hours, all the healing touch, all the reassuring conversations that have a positive impact on body, mind and spirit. “Do everything” may include some of the more palliative medical management tools, but for the chaplain, the family is empowered to always includes loving care, giving our utmost for the highest good of the patient. The everything of loving presence is always powerfully healing as it touches heart and soul. At the end-of-life, “everything” is not only technical comfort measures or even palliative interventions such as thirst-quenching lollipops, comfort mattresses and extra oxygen, but more importantly, both the health care team and the family can “do everything” with compassionate, giving, affirming, and loving presence.

Comment on Wise as Serpents: Finding Trained Trauma Chaplains in the Wake of a Crisis by rabbichaplain

rabbichaplain — Fri, 05 Oct 2012 15:42:42 +0000

I should clarify that the article quoted was not written by me. As you can see from top, the reason I bring the article is to offer caution to people to be careful with who is or isn’t trained to offer spiritual support. Personally, I agree with you that the issue was lack of training and not about evangelicalism. Yet I do want to share something from my own experiences in chaplaincy. In CPE training, I was the lone Jewish chaplain in a group of 4-6 Christian chaplains of different denominations. During our conversations, we discussed conversion and mission. And truth be told, on some fundamental level, there was a sense and hope for the conversion of others. Now, I am not going to ever make blanket statements about other beliefs and traditions. I just can relate to the concerns highlighted in the author’s piece.