Professional Chaplaincy

Professional Chaplaincy: What Is Happening to It During Health Care Reform? examines the ways that hospital chaplains can take action in response to the new health care paradigm. As well as firsthand accounts of the effects of downsizing and budget cuts, it contains suggestions for action, a literature review, and an Australian case study of cost efficiency in a hospital chaplain department. This informative book will assist you in developing future plans for maintaining and improving your hospital ministry.

Larry VandeCreek, DMin, BCC, is Director of Pastoral Research at The Healthcare Chaplaincy in New York City. For the past 23 years, he held faculty and staff positions with The Ohio State University College of Medicine and Public Health and its associated medical center. Dr. VandeCreek is a member of numerous professional associations including the American Association of Marriage and Family Counselors, the Association of Professional Chaplains, Inc., the American Association of Pastoral Counselors, and the Association for Clinical and Pastoral Education. He has published many journal articles which examine aspects of the relationship between religious faith and illness. Dr. VandeCreek is the author of A Research Primer for Pastoral Care and Counseling (Journal of Pastoral Care Publications, 1988) and is Co-Editor of The Chaplain-Physician Relationship (1991). He is Editor of the Journal of Health Care Chaplaincy (The Haworth Press, Inc.) which has published Ministry of Hospital Chaplains: Patient Satisfaction (1997), Scientific and Pastoral Perspectives on Intercessory Prayer: An Exchange Between Larry Dossey, M.D. and Health Care Chaplains (1998), Spiritual Care for Persons with Dementia: Fundamentals for Pastoral Practice (1999), and Contract Pastoral Care and Education: The Trend of the Future? (1999).

Contents o Preface o Contributions o My Experience with Health Care Reform o How Has Health Care Reform Affected Professional Chaplaincy Programs and How Are Department Directors Responding? o Health Care Reform: Analysis of Narrative Responses from Directors of Pastoral Care Departments o Economic Rationalism and the Cost Efficiency of Hospital Chaplaincy: An Australian Study o The Moon Has Four Phases and That's What Worries Me o Observations on Books, Journals, and Articles Relevant to Professional Chaplaincy and Health Care Reform o Current Contents in the Literature Concerning Health Care Reform of Importance to Professional Chaplains o Index o Reference Notes Included