June 4, 1999

Many medical milestones have been reached at the MGH — from the first demonstration of ether used for surgery to the first X-ray used in the United States. Now the MGH is home to a different kind of milestone: the first Clinical Pastoral Education program tailored specifically to help health care professionals incorporate spirituality into their clinical care.

Pioneered by Rev. Mary Martha Thiel and Sister Sheila Hammond, directors of the MGH Chaplaincy, the program trains caregivers — including physicians, nurses, therapists and social workers — to approach patients about their spiritual beliefs in a nonjudgmental, compassionate way.

"The students in this program have the ability to express their own spiritual journey and the desire to incorporate their spirituality into the service of other people," says Hammond. "Our students are taught to treat all aspects of a patient's care — not just the physical, but the emotional and spiritual as well."

During the five months of training, students are taught the various ways patients discuss their spiritual and religious beliefs and appropriate ways to respond to their questions and concerns. The program incorporates clinical work through the practice of the students' own disciplines and/or through chaplain internships. Students also are required to attend weekly program seminars and submit written work about their experiences.

"Here at the MGH and all over the country, people are looking toward holistic ways of healing in addition to conventional medicine," says Thiel. "Spiritual beliefs can be a powerful tool in the healing process."

The program recently was featured on ABC's "20/20," where medical correspondent and ordained minister Timothy Johnson, MD, chronicled the experiences of three of the program's students from the fall semester. Since the show aired, Thiel and Hammond have received hundreds of calls from hospitals across the country that want to replicate the program and individuals who want to enroll.

Six fellowships are available for the January-May 2000 training session. Four of the fellowships are sponsored by the Kenneth B. Schwartz Center and are open to direct caregivers of any discipline at any institution. Two fellowships are sponsored by the MGH Department of Nursing to be given to MGH nurses.

For more information about the program or to apply for its upcoming session, call Rev. Mary Martha Thiel in the Chaplaincy at 6-2220.

The Clinical Pastoral Education Program's May 1999 graduating class poses with Chaplaincy co-directors Sister Sheila Hammond, back left, and Rev. Mary Martha Thiel, back right, after their recent graduation ceremony. Back row, from left: Joanne Novak, MD; Julie Basque, RN; Lise Klein Kirsis; and Leslie Tannenwald. Front row, from left, Therese Holbrok, RN; Elizabeth Caitlin, MD; Susan Warchal, RN: and Esther O'Dette, RN.