Spiritual Care in Health Care Essay Assignment
Statement of Purpose
My decision to pursue a Master of Arts in Pastoral Studies: Spiritual Care in Health Care Chaplaincy at the Water Tower Campus of Loyola University has its roots in an important mission of helping people in their most needful states. My way to this path started during my undergraduate studies at theological school, where I realized my passion for pastoral care and spirituality. This passion was fueled even more through volunteering in local hospitals, where I saw the positive impact of presence and spiritual care in hospitals. Spiritual Care in Health Care Essay Assignment
Loyola University’s focus on education as the formation of the whole person, the combination of intellectual development and religious formation, reflects my vision of the future. The care for the whole person, the university’s Jesuit tradition, perfectly matches my understanding of chaplaincy. It not only focuses on the patients’ and their families’ physical condition but also tries to help them cope with their psychological and spiritual issues (Domaradzki 965). This is complemented by Loyola’s focus on social justice and ethical leadership to ensure I can serve a diverse population with compassion and professionalism.
In my professional life, as a pastoral assistant, my duties involved offering counseling services to people with different challenges in their lives. This enabled me to develop good interpersonal skills like listening, understanding patients’ emotions, and handling crises, which are crucial in chaplaincy. Nevertheless, I acknowledge the importance of extended education in grasping the nature of healthcare chaplaincy and acquiring the theological and practical skills for such ministry.
The Health Care Chaplaincy MA program at Loyola University has a well-designed curriculum that provides theological education and clinical internships. The possibility of participating in supervised CPE is especially beneficial as it will enable me to implement the theoretical knowledge I have received in practice and get feedback from experienced chaplains. Also, the opportunity to receive MDiv will provide me with a strong theological background and improve my capacity to be a spiritual leader in healthcare facilities. Spiritual Care in Health Care Essay Assignment
Thus, Loyola University’s MA in Health Care Chaplaincy and MDiv program will allow me to turn my passion into the ability to help people in their times of need and acquire the necessary tools to do so (Cadge et al., 190). I am looking forward to being a part of such a community and to sharing and discovering more about ethical and humane leadership in healthcare.
Work Cited
Cadge, Wendy, et al. “Training chaplains and spiritual caregivers: The emergence and growth of chaplaincy programs in theological education.” Pastoral psychology 69 (2020): 187-208. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11089-020-00906-5
Domaradzki, Jan. ““We are also here”—spiritual care practitioners’ experiences of the COVID-19 pandemic: A qualitative study from Poland.” Journal of religion and health 61.2 (2022): 962-992. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10943-021-01492-3 Spiritual Care in Health Care Essay Assignment