Chaplaincy Innovation Lab

We thank Providence Holy Cross Medical Center for their support for this webinar.

Join Kevin Deegan, hospital chaplain at Providence Holy Cross Medical Center, to discuss a recent LA Times article on Deegan’s spiritual care service in the COVID pandemic. We are also joined by Pulitzer finalist (2012) Francine Orr, a photojournalist who accompanied Chaplain Kevin in his work at Providence Holy Cross.

We will learn more about Deegan’s framing of chaplaincy as taking place on sacred ground as well as why journalists have taken note of spiritual care and what it means for the broader public.

Providence Holy Cross Medical Center is grateful for the opportunity to sponsor this compelling discussion: “Chaplain Kevin Deegan’s time spent with Los Angeles Times photographer Francine Orr made it possible for her to tell a beautiful yet heart-wrenching story of our caregivers’ work through the eyes of chaplains and others during some of the most challenging days of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Special thanks to Francine, whose professionalism and deep respect for the dignity of our patients and their families led to unprecedented coverage of an extremely significant moment in history.

Her work placed a spotlight on chaplains and the incredibly important role they play in patient care and family healing. They truly live our Providence Promise: Know me, care for me, ease my way.”

What does an animal chaplain do? How do humans relate to animals, and where does spiritual care enter the relationship?

Combining humorous anecdotes and thought-provoking research, Sacred Sendoffs explores human relationships with beloved pets, wild creatures, animal astronauts, marine life, farmed animals, and other sentient beings. Along the way, animal chaplain Sarah Bowen shares insights for sustaining lives, honoring deaths, and managing the emotions that arise when we lose an animal we love. While many books focus exclusively on pet loss, environmental issues, or animal welfare, Sacred Sendoffs takes on all three, revealing their unavoidable entanglement. Bowen’s ever curious and playful style tackles tough topics―recovering from personal grief, deconstructing human biases, and acknowledging planetary challenges. Sacred Sendoffs helps animal lovers uncover practical actions and everyday opportunities for helping the more-than-human world not only survive but thrive.

The Lab’s community can order Rev. Bowen’s book at https://www.sacredsendoffs.com/shop using the promo code “lab2022” to receive a $2 discount.

Have you ever grieved the loss of a pet? Do you know someone who does? Pet Chaplain® offers small-group, online training in spiritual care for pet loss. Our rigorous, research-based course will inform you about the human-animal bond, the disenfranchised grief experienced by many pet keepers, perspectives about animals in the world’s dominant faith traditions and emerging spiritual practices, the challenges of euthanasia, and other topics relevant to pet keeping and loss in the modern West. Learn how our simple, yet powerful approach to storytelling can help pet keepers make meaning of their loss. Visit PetChaplain.com to learn more.

What is the role of chaplains in our “New Age of Anxiety”? Joshua Moses is Associate Professor of Anthropology and Environmental Studies at Haverford College and has worked on religious response to the attacks of September 11th and Hurricane Katrina, studying the formation of disaster expertise (“disaster religious and spiritual care”) in what he calls the current “New Age of Anxiety.” Professor Moses’s new book Anxious Experts chronicles the rise of disaster-related spiritual expertise in the years following the attacks of 9/11. What emerges are approaches to trauma that encompass everything from meditation and acupuncture to trauma therapy and restorative justice. In this way, the ascent of spiritual expertise in response to post-9/11 disasters represents an extension of historical tensions between secular health practice and proponents of religious and spiritual care.

You can find the new book at https://www.pennpress.org/9780812225136/anxious-experts/.

Use discount code 01DAH40 to order the book at 40% off!

With the Centre for Religion and Its Contexts at Emmanuel College of Victoria University, we officially launched Chaplaincy and Spiritual Care in the Twenty-First Century: An Introduction (eds., Wendy Cadge and Shelly Rambo) on Wednesday, June 15 at 2 p.m.  EDT. Join the book’s editors and several contributors as they discuss  why this book now, the impact it will have on the field, and how  educators can put it to use. We will be joined by Pamela McCarroll  (Emmanuel College, Victoria University, University of Toronto); Jason  Callahan (VCU Health); and Shelly Rambo (Boston University School of  Theology).

Use the code 6AS21 to save 40% on this book by ordering through University of Nebraska Press.

Police chaplaincy sits in one of the most high-tension cultural  positions of modern times. With an ongoing national conversation about  the role of chaplains taking place in the context of multiple moments of  extreme social difficulty, chaplains occupy a unique place in this  sector.

Join Imam Khalid Latif, retired chaplain Sharon Ellis Davis, Chaplain  Rebecca Brown, and Chaplain Eric Skidmore for a wide-ranging and honest  conversation about serving law enforcement officers and the many roles  that police chaplains undertake.

We thank our sponsors for this webinar: National Association of Catholic Chaplains and South Carolina Law Enforcement Assistance Program.

Over the past two years, staff care has become one of the most important services provided by chaplains in healthcare settings.

In this webinar Dr. Jessica Gold, on faculty at Washington University  in St. Louis School of Medicine, will discuss the psychiatry of  healthcare workers facing burnout and other ramifications of the intense  pressures of the COVID-19 pandemic and other stressors.

Dr. Gold will also offer counsel on how chaplains can best support healthcare workers facing these challenges.

Sponsored by Pediatric Chaplains Network 

In an era of unprecedented youth mental health needs, chaplains can  play a vital role in the transition from primary healthcare facilities  to youth mental health treatment. How can chaplains best serve pediatric  patients and their families, as well as support healthcare staff, in  these in-between moments for vulnerable youth?

The Rev. Anoma Abeyaratne, Staff Chaplain at Franciscan Hospital for Children:  The Rev. Anoma Abeyaratne is also Priest Associate at All Saints  Brookline. She served as a Cox Fellow at the Cathedral Church of St.  Paul and the Diocese, and as a chaplain at Boston Children’s Hospital.  Prior to her call to ordained ministry Anoma worked as a Clinical Nurse  at the Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital. Anoma  is a Registered Nurse, a Board Certified Chaplain and holds a Master of  Divinity degree from the Episcopal Divinity School and a Bachelor of  Science degree in Nursing from Michigan State University.

She was an active lay leader in the diocese of Massachusetts for many  years prior to being ordained and maintains a passion for issues of  social justice, particularly around the issues of diversity. Her  interests include contemplative prayer, walking outdoors, cooking and  needlework.

Kristin Canavera, PhD, Clinical Psychologist at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital:  Kristin Canavera, PhD, is a pediatric psychologist at St. Jude  Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, TN. She provides psychological  services to children with cancer and hematological diseases.

She is the psychology liaison to the leukemia and ICU services, and  her research focuses on psychosocial outcomes for critically ill  patients in the ICU. Dr. Canavera also has additional training in  bioethics and health policy and serves on the St. Jude ethics committee.  Prior to St. Jude, she worked with children with anxiety and mood  disorders, OCD, and disruptive behavior disorders.

Dr. Fatima Watt, Director of Behavioral Health Services at Franciscan Children’s Hospital: Dr. Watt received her Doctorate in Clinical Psychology at the Georgia School of Professional Psychology.

She completed her clinical training in pediatric psychology at  Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta-Egleston followed by an internship and  postdoctoral fellowship at Franciscan Children’s. Prior to returning to  Franciscan Children’s as the Director of Behavioral Health Services, she  served as a pediatric psychologist at the Pappas Rehabilitation  Hospital for Children.

Dr. Watt is committed to providing therapeutic services to  underserved populations, including low-income, medically and  psychiatrically complex, and racially diverse youth and families. Dr.  Watt is credentialed by the National Register of Health Service  Psychologists.

https://www.chaplaincyinnovation.org

What does healthcare chaplaincy look like today? 

The Field Guide series is intended to offer a basic introduction to the profession of chaplaincy, from education and training through to practice. Each session includes an in-depth conversation with spiritual care practitioners on topics of key importance to those considering careers in chaplaincy. Join healthcare chaplains Linda Golding (New York-Presbyterian Hospital), Caila Rinker (Mayo Clinic), and Beba Tata (Mayo Clinic) for an accessible conversation on what this work looks like and how others can get involved.

Thank you to our sponsors for this season's Field Guide series: the E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation; Bayan Chicago; Boston College School of Theology and Ministry; Candler School of Theology; Claremont School of Theology; Iliff School of Theology; Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York.

In this webinar, a panel of leading spiritual care providers across sectors discussed the recent Chaplaincy Innovation Lab working paper “What are chaplains learning? Perspectives on the supply side," by Wendy Cadge, Grace Tien, and Trace Haythorn. Our panel offered their experiences both as chaplains in the field learning new skills and as hiring managers who must close the gap between what chaplains have learned and what they need to know in order to do their jobs best. We'll be joined by Jennifer Bailey, Ron Oliver, Su Yon Pak, and Nathan White.

You can read the working paper in full, and offer comment, at https://bit.ly/supply-working-paper-webinar.