At the summer session s end, Kimberly

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1 The Vol. 35 No. 3 / Fall 2010 Beacon News from HealthCare Chaplaincy Summer Students Give HealthCare Chaplaincy High Marks HealthCare Chaplaincy s summer session in Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) attracts students who may not become professional chaplains but who see that CPE will help them as clergy who serve local communities and congregations. A typical week for a CPE student might include pastoral care of patients and their loved ones, participation on interdisciplinary health care teams, clinical seminars in which students undergo peer review, and individual supervision. This summer 48 students from diverse backgrounds and faiths completed CPE. The Beacon spoke with several who trained at NYU Langone Medical Center. Emily Brown, a graduate of Union Theological Seminary, is preparing for ordination in The United Church of Christ where CPE training is a requirement. Having heard that CPE training is powerful and transformative, she recognized that it would hone her counseling skills. Her seminary recommended that she take HealthCare Chaplaincy s CPE program. Emily said, My peer group is very diverse. There are interesting dynamics here. Kimberly Cohen is about to begin her fifth year of rabbinical school. She entered the CPE program out of a deep feeling that it would help her be a better rabbi. At the summer session s start, she said, I expect to have many moments where I ll be stepping out of my comfort zone. I expect to be challenged by my classmates. We re all different, but we all come with a sense of purpose to our calling. At the summer session s end, Kimberly said that her experience with the course was profound. I now feel in my heart how significant these past ten weeks have been the patients I have cared for, the group, my supervisor I am forever changed in ways that I cannot fully realize now. I anticipate returning to the revelations and challenges of this summer throughout my rabbinate. Aaron Wessman, who comes from a small farming community in central Minnesota, intends to become a Roman Catholic priest. His seminary requires CPE, and Aaron chose HealthCare Chaplaincy for its religious and cultural diversity. Because we re a missionary group, said Aaron, it s very helpful to be around people who have different ways of understanding life and religion. I definitely have anxieties going into the program, but I wanted the challenge. Aaron found the program to exceed his expectations. As he was completing the summer session, he said, I was intensely involved in the lives of people from a wonderful diversity of cultures and religions. I was challenged to grow myself, especially in the area of emotional insight and risktaking. HealthCare Chaplaincy s CPE program has made me a better human being. A Dream Begins to Take Shape Chaplaincy Signs Purchase & Sale Contract HealthCare Chaplaincy has signed an agreement to purchase 180,000 square feet of development rights on a riverfront land parcel on South Street in lower Manhattan on which to build America s first palliative care campus. At the core of the campus will be a unique enhanced assisted living residence where 120 people with serious progressive illnesses will live in small, familial communities. The receptive and responsive residence staff will work to create a distinctive patient-centered health care culture and environment. Co-directing the residence will be a professional board certified palliative care chaplain and an experienced New York City licensed nonprofit assisted living operator. They will team to ensure that residents receive excellent physical and psychosocial care and the support to draw upon their own spiritual (and in some cases religious) resources to find comfort and meaning. C O N T I N U E D O N P A G E 3

2 News Briefs To encourage diversity in health care management, the Greater New York Hospital Association (GNYHA) has created the nation s largest and most successful summer internship program for African- American, Asian and Latino college students who are pursuing a degree in health services management. Mary Medina, HealthCare Chaplaincy trustee and founding director of the GNYHA Center for Trustee Initiatives, says that hospitals need talented leaders in a variety of areas, including attorneys and financial managers. In July HealthCare Chaplaincy s recent executive vice president and COO, Jeanne Lee, shared anecdotes with the students about her own career path, while the Rev. Florine Thompson explained the value that professional chaplains bring to health care administrators. Trustee Mary Medina, founding director of the GNYHA Center for Trustee Initiatives (far left) and Jeanne Lee (far right) meet with the students. The Rev. Sim Gardner, Director of Pastoral Care at Lawrence Hospital Center, served as the volunteer instructor for 20 inmate students in the Peer Counseling Course of the college-level Certificate of Ministry and Human Services Program at Sing Sing Correctional Facility during the spring 2010 school term. He says, Our students are bright, motivated, and very appreciative. Helping them to name and hone their own intuitive peer counseling skills is a great resource for more meaningful living both inside and outside the prison's walls. Kaiser Health News reports a growing trend among hospitals nationwide as health care centers try to make room for people from a wide variety of faiths, as well as those who have no faith or are spiritual but not religious. The article quotes the Rev. George Handzo, HealthCare Chaplaincy s vice president for pastoral care leadership and practice: Staff and patient populations at many U.S. hospitals are much more diverse than they once were, and hospitals know it makes good business sense to accommodate them. You can find the full story online here: In line with this trend, Winthrop University Hospital, one of our partner institutions, now has a dedicated place for afternoon prayers for observant Jews, thanks to the efforts of Winthrop s Pastoral Care and Education Department. In August senior vice president for innovation and development Claire Haaga Altman succeeded Jeanne Lee as executive vice president and chief operating officer. After many years as a senior health care administrator, including more than six at HealthCare Chaplaincy, Jeanne has made a professional career decision to join consulting firm Loeb & Troper. Father Smith has said, We express our profound appreciation for Jeanne s incalculable contributions. We are fortunate in having an individual with Claire s commitment, knowledge, competence, and experience to help us realize our vision to transform how health care is understood and delivered. At New York University Langone Medical Center the Rev. David Fleenor has been appointed Manager, Department of Pastoral Care, and he continues as Clinical Pastoral Education Sup erv isor. He joined HealthCare Chaplaincy in Teaming with David is new staff chaplain Holly Gaudette. She previously served at Valley Hospital in Ridgewood, NJ., where she worked closely with members of their palliative care team to coordinate family-centered care as well as providing spiritual care to critical care, geriatrics and the cardiology units. At Memorial Sloan- Kettering Cancer Center the Rev. Jill Bowden is t h e n e w D i r e c t o r, Chaplaincy Service. Since 2007 she has been Director of Pastoral Care and Education, Winthrop University Hospital. The new director of the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Donald Berwick, MD is a revolutionary. And in this new position, he can do much to create positive change. In an essay in Health Affairs, a leading journal of health policy thought and research, Dr. Berwick argues for putting the consumer of medical care first. Patient-centered care, as Dr. Berwick describes it, means that the patient receives treatment that is consistent with his or her goals, values, situation, and choices. We at HealthCare Chaplaincy agree, as this philosophy of patient-centered care permeates all of our work in research, education, and clinical practice, and our future plans. Dr. Berwick s complete essay in Health Affairs, can be found online at Donald Berwick, MD, is director of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Dr. Berwick previously served as president and chief executive officer of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, clinical professor for pediatrics and health care policy at the Harvard Medical School and professor of health policy and management at the Harvard School of Public Health. 2 The Beacon

3 < A Dream Begins to Take Shape C O N T I N U E D F R O M P A G E 1 The campus will also be the venue for national demonstration projects in spiritcentered palliative care research and education, and a place to develop and test the efficacy of an innovative palliative care medical home model. Using an evidence-based approach to quality medical treatment and planning, this medical home not only will serve the primary needs of the residents, but also will offer convenient and accessible palliative health care resources to people living in the neighboring community. The New York Times says, Palliative care is one of the fastest-growing fields in medicine." Claire H. Altman, the Chaplaincy s executive vice president and chief operating officer, who is overseeing the project s development, Nicholas Haines, Trustee & Real Estate Committee Chair and Claire Haaga Altman, Executive Vice President & COO, review plans for the Palliative Care Campus. says, Palliative care helps people make informed decisions about treatment options that are consistent with their values, goals, and choices. This residence will create the first community of its kind where people with serious progressive illness can live in a supportive and life-enhancing environment while dealing with often life-threatening illnesses. The palliative care campus is an innovative development that is certain to be of national relevance in studying the efficiency and effectiveness of how we care for individuals with chronic progressive diseases, says Nicholas Haines, HealthCare Chaplaincy trustee and chair of its real estate committee. Mr. Haines is executive vice president and COO of the Bromley Companies, a New York based real estate development and investment company, which owns and manages office, retail, residential and industrial space. FXFOWLE, a leading architectural firm and specialist in sustainable design, working with Clodagh Designs and Michael Gelfand, an experienced assisted living architect, have completed the schematic design of this unique mixed use building. Future issues of The Beacon and our e- newsletter HealthCare Chaplaincy Today will keep you informed as this exciting and unprecedented initiative progresses. < Bev s & Joe s Palliative Care Story C O N T I N U E D F R O M P A G E 6 Palliative care would have provided an essential support network, directing us to get him the treatment and care he so desperately needed, right from the beginning. Palliative care is a medical specialty which provides coordinated, comprehensive care to reduce pain and suffering for anyone who is given a life-threatening or life altering diagnosis. It is care to provide comfort and support for the patient and for the patient s loved ones. This medical specialty differs from hospice in that you are not required to have a six month or less prognosis, and curative/restorative treatment is allowed and provided. Palliative care does not just provide care to those who are dying (which is an essential hospice service); it also provides care to those who are ill, and can be or might be, healed or cured. Two years ago, during my first trip abroad, I went to Israel. While there, I had the opportunity to speak with Dr. Shragit Greenberg, from Ben Gurion University in the Negev. She is one of Israel s leading experts on palliative care (and a wonderful person too). We discussed the importance of alleviating pain and suffering. She told me as others had, that it is known that if a person has less pain, less anxiety and fewer problems they can fight more and do better. She emphasized that palliative care should be initiated from the beginning, increasing the intensity of care as an illness progresses. She also said palliative care does not preclude restorative treatment. It is an adjunct to treatment, helping a person to heal if possible. Its main purpose is to alleviate pain and suffering, whether a cure is possible or not. There is a tremendous need for education for both the medical establishment (the providers), and the public who are unaware that this type of essential care even exists. When people are ill they need help and support to navigate the system, as well as to find pain relief, comfort and cure if possible. It is a sign of our humanity that we provide necessary support to those who are ill, and to those who love them and/or care for them. Editor s note: This essay, in longer form, originally appeared on the blog Single Payer NY. A Note to Our Friends To support HealthCare Chaplaincy online; to arrange In honor of and In memory of gifts; and for information about other types of support, please visit our Website: For personal assistance, please contact Nicholas L. Grimaldi at , ext. 133, or at ngrimaldi@healthcarechaplaincy.org. Advancement Office: 315 East 62 nd Street; New York, NY 10065; , ext The Beacon

4 Profiles New Trustee Kate Kibler is senior vice president of men s merchandising and merchandise planning at Tommy Hilfiger, having joined the firm in 2004 as director of design. She received a B.S. in fashion design from Philadelphia University and an MBA in corporate finance and strategy from New York University s Stern School of Business. HealthCare Chaplaincy has a critical and unique mission aiding the medical community but more importantly, aiding patients, says Kate. So often the spiritual and psychological needs of patients and loved ones are overlooked. I look forward to helping the team at Chaplaincy contribute to the fulfillment of patient needs. New Trustee Suzanne Sunshine is a principal of S. Sunshine & Associates, an advisory service assisting nonprofit organizations in all of their real estate needs. Prior to forming her company, Suzanne was vice president, nonprofit practice group at CB Richard Ellis, and director, nonprofit advisory group at Cushman & Wakefield. She holds a B.A. in international relations from Brown University and an M.B.A. in real estate from Columbia University. I am very pleased at a relatively young age, says Susan, to be working with a nonprofit that is focused on end-of-life issues and care. My own experience with my father at the time of his passing, was as meaningful and important as the birth of my children. Editor s note: Ms. Sunshine s late father, Abraham Sunshine, M.D., was a distinguished physician and a professor of clinical medicine at the New York University School of Medicine where he served on the faculty for more than fifty years. Alexander Lloyd, our first Tucker Foundation postgraduate fellow through the Dartmouth College Partners in Community Service Program, will work on our palliative care campus project and others until next summer. He was a presidential scholar as an undergraduate, where he combined his major in religion with pre-med studies. His extensive research background in medical ethics has led him to recognize that physicians need to be sensitive to the religious and spiritual needs of their patients. Alex intends to attend medical school. He says Through my work at HealthCare Chaplaincy, I hope to gain insight into palliative care issues and a better understanding of how to handle religion in a medical context so that I might use this knowledge to provide better and more complete care as a physician. Save the Date November 4, 2010 Wholeness of Life Awards Dinner Inaugurating our 50 th Anniversary Year Cipriani 42nd Street, New York 4 The Beacon

5 A Message from the Rev. Dr. Walter J. Smith, S.J., President & CEO The motto Ever to Excel of my alma mater Boston College was taken from the sixth book of Homer s Iliad. During a ferocious battle between the Trojans and the Greeks, Diomedes noted the zeal and valor of the young Glaucus, and asked him to identify himself. Glaucus replies by recalling the words of his father, Hippolocus, as he set out to battle the Trojans: Aἰὲν ἀριστεύειν - ever to excel, to do better than others. Alert to HealthCare Chaplaincy s similar aim ever to excel, we are introducing some changes beginning with this issue of The Beacon that will further our commitment to be green and foster sustainability. We have reduced the format of this print publication from eight to six pages and made it easier to read. For topics that you may wish to pursue more in depth, we'll provide links to our website or to other places on the Internet. We re going green in an additional way. Our forthcoming annual report will be published electronically and easily accessible from our website. We will let you know when it is available for viewing. Aἰὲν ἀριστεύειν - ever to excel, to do better than others. By reducing reliance on printed mailings and increasing the use of computer-mediated communications, the Chaplaincy will be able to reach you quickly and use cost-effective technologies that combine text, graphics, sound, and video in a single message. And at the same time, we will better conserve our resources. Beginning in October, we will increase the publication of our ed newsletter HealthCare Chaplaincy Today from once to twice monthly. If you currently receive The Beacon but have not yet subscribed to our ed newsletter, please consider signing up. You ll find instructions below. ciency of health care by strengthening our investments and partnerships in palliative medicine and research, education of health professionals, and compassionate patient care. Aἰὲν ἀριστεύειν. HealthCare Chaplaincy shall always strive to excel in our efforts to improve the quality and effi- Thank you for your encouragement and support. The Rev. Dr. Walter J. Smith, S.J. President & CEO Spirituality is the aspect of humanity that refers to the way individuals seek and express meaning and purpose and the way they experience their connectedness to the moment, to self, to others, to nature, and to the significant or sacred. (Source: Archstone Foundation 2009 consensus conference) ifting the Spirit It s easy to sign up for our e-newsletter HealthCare Chaplaincy Today Just go to our website at At the top right-hand corner, you ll see an invitation to Sign Up for Our Free e-newsletter. Just click on it and the subscribe here links and enter your name and address. You will receive a return message requesting that you confirm your registration. Please be assured that we value your privacy, and that we will not share your address with anyone. 5 The Beacon

6 315 East 62nd Street, 4th Floor New York, NY Phone: (212) Fax: (212) healthcarechaplaincy.org Presorted Standard U.S. Postage PAID Wilkes-Barre, PA Permit No. 413 HealthCare Chaplaincy is a national nonprofit leader in the research, education and evidence-based practice of professional multifaith chaplaincy care. It helps people find meaning and comfort regardless of religion or beliefs in stressful health care situations. It is a thought leader for patient-centered care and accessible, affordable, and quality palliative care. For nearly fifty years it has collaborated successfully with major academic medical centers and other professional organizations in the integration of spiritual care within health care. Vol. 35 No. 3 / The Beacon Fall 2010 Managing Editor: Bernie Rosner Art & Design: Brian H. Kim Director of Marketing & Communications: Jim Siegel (212) , ext.141/ jsiegel@healthcarechaplaincy.org 2010, HealthCare Chaplaincy Follow us on Spotlight on Palliative Care at Visit us online at healthcarechaplaincy.org Palliative care is an approach that improves the quality of life of patients and their families facing the problem associated with life-threatening illness, through the prevention and relief of suffering by means of early identification and impeccable assessment and treatment of pain and other problems, physical, psychosocial and spiritual. World Health Organization, WHO Definition of Palliative Care, 2010 HealthCare Chaplaincy in Keynote Address at George Washington University The George Washington Institute for Spirituality and Health ( GWish ), l a u n c h e d i t s S u m m e r Institute program with a k e y n o t e talk by the Rev. George Handzo, BCC, vice president, Pastoral Care Leadership & Practice, HealthCare Chaplaincy. The Institute is a week-long clinical and leadership program for health care professionals of all disciplines, with the emphasis on enabling participants to integrate patients spiritual beliefs, practices and coping-skills into their care plan. The Rev. Handzo, together with GWish Executive Director Christina Puchalski, MD, FACP, spoke on the subject of Communicating with Patients About Spiritual Issues: Screening, History, Assessment. They talked about developing a spiritual treatment plan a team activity, with a chaplain in the lead. Participants were instructed in the art of interviewing and conducting a spiritual history of patients, identifying spiritual problems and distress, and determining spiritual care interventions. The Rev. Handzo s participation with GWish reflects HealthCare Chaplaincy s commitment to educate health care professionals on the important role that spiritual care plays in palliative care. Bev s & Joe s Palliative Care Story by Bev Alves In the fall of 2006, my husband Joseph was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. From the moment we learned of the mass on his pancreas to the day that he passed on, we were confronted and confounded by a medical (non) system that was uncoordinated and unable to deal effectively with his excruciating pain, our anxiety, stress and impending loss. Although Joe had full medical coverage, there was no system in place to help us get the care he needed. We were left on our own, without guidance, without support (to secure even essential tests and treatments), and without adequate pain medication. We were alone. C O N T I N U E D O N P A G E 3 6 The Beacon