PASTORAL CARE
Expanding Our Community
As we crossed the bridge into the new millennium, The HealthCare
Chaplaincy expanded its network of facilities that have established
professional centers for pastoral care and education. The year
2000 saw the addition of two new institutions to our growing
roster of healthcare partners: North General Hospital, a 240-bed
minority-operated teaching hospital that serves the Central
and East Harlem community, and The Brooklyn Hospital Center,
a 653-bed member facility of the New York-Presbyterian Healthcare
System. At each of these facilities, our chaplains address the
spiritual healthcare needs of truly diverse communities. “Pastoral
care providers learn to navigate diversity and respect the uniqueness
of each person they encounter,” said the Rev. Carlos Alejandro,
a bilingual supervisory resident at The HealthCare Chaplaincy
who has created North General’s first pastoral care department.
A recent addition to The Chaplaincy’s roster of partner
institutions, Winthrop-University Hospital in Minneola, Long
Island received an impressive donation from its auxiliary to
support the foundation of a new department of pastoral care
and education. Raised through a variety of community activities,
the contribution reflects the hospital’s commitment to
making chaplaincy services an integral part of patient care.
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| Patients,
family, and staff joined in a Purim celebration organized
by Rabbi Stephen Shulman (not pictured) at Memorial Sloan-Kettering
Cancer Center |
Celebrating the Holidays
Being hospitalized during a holiday can be difficult for patients
and their loved ones. Our chaplains organize and conduct services
that celebrate the holidays of all faith groups, allowing patients
to honor their traditions despite their illness. The Chaplaincy’s
Imam Yusuf Hasan organized the first Ramadan celebration at
Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in January of 2000. Young
patients, family members, and staff of all faiths took part
in the festivities, which included an introduction to the Muslim
holiday, a prayer service, and gifts for the children.
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| Imam
Yusuf Hasan with a Muslim family at Memorial Sloan-Kettering
Cancer Center’s first Ramadan celebration
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Palliative Care
Our partnership with North General Hospital is a multifaceted
collaboration that includes not only a pastoral care department,
but also interdisciplinary palliative care services and education.
Honoring its commitment to serve the unique health needs of
the African American and Latino populations of Harlem, the hospital
involved chaplains in providing palliative care that is sensitive
to the strong faith traditions of these communities.
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| The
Rev. Carlos Alejandro, founding director of the pastoral
care department at North General Hospital
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Mental Health
A mental illness presents a difficult struggle for patients
and their family members—one that is uniquely receptive
to compassionate care that soothes the mind, body, and spirit.
Chaplains at New York-Presbyterian Hospitals’ Payne Whitney
and Westchester psychiatric divisions have created a model
of pastoral care that integrates community clergy in the treatment
of those struggling with psychiatric disorders. “Clergy
are often faced with challenging congregants that they cannot
handle alone,” said Chaplain Amy Manierre. “We provide
education and resources that will help their parishioners
and help them cope themselves.”
Richard Payne, M.D. |
A BRIDGE
BETWEEN PARTNER INSTITUTIONS
Dr. Richard Payne, chief of pain and palliative care services
at Chaplaincy partner Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer
Center, is committed to providing the Harlem community
with palliative care resources and education. "Major
cancer centers like ours have a responsibility to reach
out to the surrounding neighborhoods," he said, "and
to do so in a culturally sensitive way." Through
a collaboration with North General Hospital, another Chaplaincy
partner, Dr. Payne works with chaplains, local clergy,
and healthcare staff to bring palliative care services
to the underserved populations of this community.
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