End-of-Life Issues Are Focus of
Third Annual Winter Clinical
Pastoral Education Day

As patients confront the end of life, chaplains face a series of complex questions when ministering to these patients and their families and loved ones. Do patient and family agree? Has the patient made his or her wishes known? How large a part does religion play?

For the 70 Chaplaincy students, chaplains, staff, and trustees at Winter CPE Day, these issues came dramatically to life as chaplains from various hospitals, under the direction of the Rev. Meigs Ross, director of pastoral care and education at St. Luke’s - Roosevelt Hospital Center, acted out a chaplain-patient-family interaction based on a compilation of recent "verbatim" case studies. Held each winter and summer, CPE day provides an opportunity for Chaplaincy students from each of HCC’s partner institutions to learn from other CPE supervisors, Chaplaincy program staff, and each other.

The panel "reenacted" a student chaplain’s response to a dying patient who was reluctant to receive pastoral care, and some of whose family were in denial about the seriousness of his illness. After each segment, a panel of chaplains commented on the issues raised and answered questions from the students and other guests.

The panel included Rabbi Shira Stern, director of The Chaplaincy’s Jewish Institute for Pastoral Care; Chaplain Jane Mather, director ofpastoral care at Winthrop Hospital; the Rev. Jo Clare Wilson, director of pastoral care and education at Griffin Hospital; and Imam Ramadan Zakat, supervisory resident at New York University Medical Center.

A morning presentation on pastoral research by HCC librarian Sharon Brown provided insight into the extent and organization of the holdings of The Chaplaincy’s Joan B. & William G. Spears Center for Pastoral Research.

	CPE student Tim St. Onge (Above) Chaplains lead a panel discussion of end-of-life issues

Afternoon workshops were held on such topics as " Energy Medicine" (Rabbi Jeffrey Silberman), "When the Pillars Come Crashing Down: The Effects of the Clinical Method of Learning on Our Pastoral Care" (the Rev.Dr.Yvonne Valeris), "Using the Aesthetic in Pastoral Care, The ART of Pastoral Care" (Chaplain David Fries), and " Understanding Personality in Pastoral Care" (the Rev. D r. John Bucchino, O.F.M.).

" This has been a great experience for me," said CPE student Tim St. Onge. A Catholic studying at Griffin Hospital in Derby, Connecticut, Tim said he benefited from the interfaith dialogues that CPE day inspired. "It was also wonderful to listen to so many seasoned superv isors who really get to the heart and soul of the matter, " he said.

Sarah Nazimova-Bach, a Quaker student at Beth Israel Singer Division, was excited about meeting her fellow students."You form such an intimacy with your own group, which is really intense and wonderful," she said. "But it’s enlightening to open up and learn from the other students as well."

"We are very pleased at the success of this CPE Day," said the Rev. Denise G. Haines, HCC’s director of education and community outreach. "The educational leadership shown by our chaplains and staff is a strong testament to The Chaplaincy’s quality and standards. It’s heartening to see our CPE Day tradition thrive and grow. "