“It’s About How You LIVE – In Faith,” materials are now available free of charge from Caring Connections, an initiative of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization. These resources help hospices and faith communities support people living with a serious illness and their family caregivers.
New research released this week affirms the hospice approach of recognizing faith as an important issue for people faced with serious illness or impending death. The importance of well informed healthcare professionals and clear understandings about care at the end of life must also be available to patients and families notes the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization.
“Hospice has always placed importance on the spiritual needs of the patients and families they serve and spiritual care is an integral component of the hospice philosophy of care,” said J. Donald Schumacher, NHPCO president and CEO.
Newly available materials include the “It’s About How You LIVE – In Faith Outreach Guide” and the consumer brochure, “Offering Spiritual Support for Family or Friends.”
The Outreach Guide offers key strategies to help hospice and palliative care providers and coalitions with:
— Building partnerships with faith communities in their area,
— Examples of successful model programs,
— Practical resources to help develop faith community outreach and initiatives.
Created in collaboration with the Duke Institute on Care at the End of Life and Project Compassion, the guide is non-denominational and is intended to help hospices and coalitions reach out across traditional religious and cultural lines.
A recent survey of professional clergy and lay leaders by the Duke Institute on Care at the End of Life indicates that many faith community leaders do not have the knowledge, resources and support they need to care for people during this important time of life. For example:
— Though 90 percent of clergy report visiting with people at the end of life, only 60 percent describe themselves as “very comfortable” making these visits;
— Fewer than 40 percent of leaders surveyed feel comfortable training lay people to offer support for others;
— Fewer than 20 percent of respondents offer any education related to serious illness, caregiving, end of life, or grief.
Questions about meaning, purpose, guilt, forgiveness, healing and hope are common to those struggling with illness and end-of-life care. Many people turn to their faith community or reestablish contact with religious traditions when faced with a serious or life-limiting illness. For more than 30 years, hospices have helped the dying and their family caregivers with such issues. Working collaboratively with neighboring faith communities can be a valuable source of support for families.
“A shared concern for spiritual care creates a natural connection among hospices, coalitions and faith communities and a common ground for education, dialogue and partnership,” Schumacher added. “These resources from Caring Connections will help providers respond more effectively to patients and families coping with the serious illness or death of a loved one.”
Materials may be downloaded free of charge at Caring Connection’s Web site, www.caringinfo.org/faith. Questions may be directed to the HelpLine at 1-800-658-8898.
Caring Connections, program of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, is a national consumer and community engagement initiative to improve care at the end of life, supported by a grant from The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Princeton, NJ. Caring Connections provides free resources and information that address end-of-life issues such as advance care planning, serious illness, caregiving, grief and more. www.caringinfo.org.
Duke Institute for Care at the End of Life is a catalyst for growth and transformation, a global resource to improve care for those at life’s end. The mission of the Institute is to create and promote the growth of knowledge and to encourage the application of that knowledge in caring for the whole person at life’s end. www.iceol.duke.edu.
Project Compassion provides support for people living with serious illness, care giving, end of life and grief. Project Compassion helps people have the resources, support, and hope they need to live life to the fullest every day. www.project-compassion.org.
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