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Thesis/Dissertation Information
- Degree Disciplines:
- Theology
Notes
- Abstract:
- The ministerial concern of this thesis-project is the provision of spiritual care for healthcare providers, patients, and their families within for-profit medical centers that do not have a chaplain on staff. I wondered, ―Can a successful and effective program be instituted for spiritual/pastoral care to meet the spiritual needs of patients and staff in a medical care center that does not have a chaplain? To address this question, I explore some of the elements and key players in a typical for-profit medical center. I ask, 1) What insight can be garnered from some of the major organizations within the U.S. medical field? 2) What insights can be garnered from constituents of these centers? and 3) What Christian Story/Vision might support expenditures related to spiritual/pastoral care programs at for-profit medical centers and what reformulations might be needed for that Story/Vision to serve pluralistic environments of care? Present praxis is illustrated first through a thick description of the ministerial context and the players within it. The key documents of the Joint on Accreditation of Hospital Organizations, the American Hospital Association, and the Association of American Medical Colleges give insight into some of the foundations for the provision of spiritual care in U.S. healthcare institutions. Research analysis with constituents provides additional insight into what works and what needs improvement in terms of institutions‘ spiritual care. The Lukan symposia of Christian Story/Vision brings illumination to present praxis and provides a model for new praxis characterized by a particular form of hospitality, a form which was modeled by Jesus in his interactions with those who were social outcasts, sinners, uninvited guests, and/or the sick and disabled. This form of hospitality and concern for vulnerable persons elevates the importance of healing (spiritual and physical) and illustrates how care for those who are sick can be provided within a Christian context. The message taken from the Lukan symposia is reformulated then to make it relevant to ministerial contexts at for-profit, public medical centers. The work of four contemporary theologians, Margaret Farley, Roberto Goizueta, Mary Jo Iozzio, and Letty Russell, are applied to the reformulation of this message, fitting it to issues related to the provision of spiritual care within today‘s pluralistic medical care environments. While I answer my overarching ministerial question affirmatively, I qualify that answer by noting that such a program would be limited to the provision of spiritual care resources and that, ultimately, chaplains would need to be hired to provide the kind of coordination, counseling, and professional oversight needed to render fully effective spiritual care. I propose that a change of perspective, realized through understanding the hospitable relationship, is needed for the provision of spiritual care. In short, hospitable relationships ensure that the demands of justice will be met: patients and their family members will receive care consistent with the integrity of their entire being—body, mind, and spirit.
- Thesis:
- Thesis (D.Min.)--Barry University, 2011.
- Bibliography:
- Includes bibliographical references (leaves 268-275).
Record Information
- Source Institution:
- Barry University
- Holding Location:
- Barry University Archives and Special Collections
- Rights Management:
- Copyright Valerie Turner. Permission granted to Barry University to digitize, archive and distribute this item for non-profit research and educational purposes. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires permission of the copyright holder.
- Resource Identifier:
- BV4011.3 .T87 2011_TurnerValerie ( BU-Local )
- Classification:
- BV4011.3 .T87 2011 ( lcc )
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