WJC10 Session 1 - Utilizing a Novel Intervention: The Spiritual Legacy Document (SLD) for Patients with Advanced Diseases

Description:

Overview:
In this novel intervention, chaplains interviewed patients and support person (SP) pairs, co-developing a tangible record of the participant's spiritual journey called a personal Spiritual Legacy Document (SLD) that was later professionally printed for the participant to share with important others. The current study is an expansion of a previously published pilot and is the culmination of nearly seven years of data collection. Building on the work of Dignity Therapy (DT), the Hear My Voice (HMV) study has a specifically spiritual focus and utilizes chaplains for the interviews. Outcome data describe changes in spiritual well-being (SWB), spiritual coping strategies (SC), and quality of life (QOL) among patients and SP pairs.

Learning Objectives:

• To explore Spiritual Legacy Documents (SLDs) as novel interventions in chaplaincy care
• To examine participant outcomes of those who received SLD intervention from chaplains
• To discuss implications for chaplaincy care among those with advanced illness and their support person

Reading:
Piderman, K. M., Radecki Breitkopf, C., Jenkins, S. M., Ingram, C., Sytsma, T. T., Lapid, M. I., Tata, B. S., Chatterjee, K., Egginton, J. S., & Jatoi, A. (2020). Hearing and Heeding the Voices of those with Advanced Illnesses. Journal of Palliative Care, 35(4), 248?255. https://doi.org/10.1177/0825859720928623

Presenters:
Rev. Marilyn J. D. Barnes MS MA MPH BCC, is a Vice President of Mission and Spiritual Care in the Advocate Aurora Health Care System in Illinois. She previously served as a Senior Staff Chaplain at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital. She is a 2018 Transforming Chaplaincy Fellow graduate. Her research interests include the use of simulation in chaplaincy training and education, the impact of spiritual/religious coping on the association between discrimination and stress among midlife women, and the experiences of health care chaplains of color.

Cate Michelle Desjardins MDiv MPH, is the Executive Director of Mennonite Healthcare Fellowship and convener of the Pediatrics Spiritual Care Research Network. She previously served for five years in various roles at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center. Her research interests include the role of religion in surrogate decision-making and in coping with caregiving for children with complex medical needs. She completed the Transforming Chaplaincy Research Fellowship in 2019.

Rev. Shelley Varner-Perez MDiv MPH BCC CPH, is Senior Program Manager and Chaplain-Researcher at Indiana University (IU) Health, Indianapolis, as well as an Affiliated Research Scientist in the Center for Aging Research with the Regenstrief Institute. She previously served nine years as a chaplain at VA Portland Health Care System in Portland, Oregon. She completed the Transforming Chaplaincy Research Fellowship in 2019 at the conclusion of a Master of Public Health degree in Epidemiology. Her research interests include spiritual care with family surrogate decision-makers and staff support following code blue events, as well as using art to engage those who are non-religious/unaffiliated.

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