Present at the creation: the clinical pastoral movement and the origins of the dialogue between religion and psychiatry

The contemporary dialogue between religion and psychiatry has its roots in what is called the clinical pastoral movement. The early leaders of the clinical pastoral movement (Anton Boisen, Elwood Worcester, Helen Flanders Dunbar, and Richard Cabot) were individuals of talent, even genius, whose lives and work intersected one another in the early decades of the twentieth century. Their legacy endures in the persons they inspired and continue to inspire and in the professional organizations and academic programs that profit from their pioneering work. To understand them and the era of their greatest productivity is to understand some of what psychiatry and religion have to say to each other. Appreciating their legacy requires attention to the context of historical movements and forces current in America at the end of the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century that shaped religious, psychiatric, and cultural discourse. This essay attempts to provide an introduction to this rich and fascinating material. This material was first presented as a Grand Rounds lecture at The New York Presbyterian Hospital, Payne Whitney Westchester in the Department of Psychiatry, Weill Cornell Medical College.

From reel time to real time: patient simulation for chaplain interns

The simulation center provides the chaplain interns with a safe environment to practice and participate in different scenarios. It gives them the time to familiarize themselves with intensive care conditions such as the equipment, alarms and noise as well as the levels of activity and the very real limitations of space. It is an important opportunity to try new skills, to address their fears of being present in intense medical interventions, to see where improvement in their conduct is needed, to confirm the value of the communication skills they are being taught, and to develop empathy with patients, family members, and hospital staff. The students receive immediate feedback from peers and supervisors as well as immediate reaction from live actors portraying staff, patients, and family. For the teaching supervisor it is a valuable way to observe clinical conduct. It also provides evidence-based observations of the development and maintenance of professional standards. All participants, including the chaplain interns, the teaching supervisors, and the simulation coordinators observe that the CPE goals involving patient simulation are being met. An immediate result of addressing these goals demonstrates that the patients, families, and staff of St. Michael's Hospital receive high-quality spiritual and religious care from chaplain interns who are studying and working to improve their proficiency.