The Chaplaincy's Research Findings Garner Coverage in Prestigious Medical Journal

Article Questions Trend Incorporating Religion into Healthcare

In a recent New England Journal of Medicine article coauthored by the Rev. Dr. Larry VandeCreek, director of pastoral research at The HealthCare Chaplaincy, the writers conclude that uniting religion and medicine oversimplifies two very complex and different realms of human experience. Entitled, "Should Physicians Prescribe Religious Activities?", the article says that mixing the two oversteps the boundaries of medicine and diminishes the power of religion, leading to a host of ethical, methodological, and practical problems. "Patients can easily view recommendations concerning religious activities from physicians as coercive, since religion is considered a private matter," Chaplain VandeCreek observed.

The Rev. Dr. Walter J. Smith, S.J., president and CEO of The Chaplaincy, called the NEJM article well-deserved recognition of The Chaplaincy's research program, which has achieved national stature for its work in evaluating the role of chaplaincy in healthcare. "Because our research output is so critical to these vital questions in the healthcare field, we have added a co-director of research, Dr. Andrew Weaver. He is an ordained minister in the Methodist church, a clinical psychologist, and a much-published author on pastoral care and counseling.Dr. Weaver will help to expand the scope of our research activities," he said.

At a joint news conference to announce publication of the article, Dr. Margot Hover and the Rev. George Handzo, both of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, discussed the difficulties of mixing religion and medicine. Joined by Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center researcher and coauthor Dr. Richard Sloan, they agreed that the evidence to support bringing religion into medicine is weak and lacks clarity and specificity, with significant methodological flaws and conflicting findings.

Dr. Margot Hover and the Rev. George Handzo field questions from reporters at a press conference announcing research findings published in the New England Journal of Medicine

"Religion can be more sensitive than sex or money," Dr. Hover, a coauthor of the article, added. "Engaging patients about religious concerns requires skills for which most physicians are generally not trained." In response to a question on whether there is evidence linking religion to health outcomes, Chaplain Handzo noted that chaplains work with patients in their belief systems. "Results come from belief, not proof," he said. Of the nine collaborating researchers of this report, six are HealthCare Chaplaincy colleagues. They include, in addition to Hover and VandeCreek: the Rev. Carlo Casalone, S.J., M.D.; the Rev. Trudi Jinpu Hirsch, supervisory resident at Beth Israel Medical Center; Imam Yusuf H. Hasan, staff chaplain at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center; and Rabbi Ralph Kreger, chaplain at Lenox Hill Hospital and the Hospital for Special Surgery.