Agenda
All Times US Eastern Time
Day One
Monday, April 20, 2026
11:00 am
Welcome and Opening Remarks
Welcome to the Caring for the Human Spirit Conference! We are excited to kick off this transformative event and set the tone for the next three days of growth and inspiration. Get ready to unleash the power of spiritual care and connect with other professionals.
11:30 am
Keynote: Soul Repair for Chaplains and Nurses
Dr. Mark Lazenby, Dean and Professor of Nursing and Philosophy,
Sue and Bill Gross School of Nursing, University of California, Irvine
Chaplains and nurses accompany people through suffering, loss, and moral conflict, and in doing so often carry wounds of their own. This keynote explores how caregiving can function as both a source of spiritual injury and a pathway to renewal: a process of soul repair for the caregiver. Drawing on qualitative research with nurses in Australia, Norway, and the United States, the talk introduces a framework for sustaining the caregiver's spirit. Four domains are highlighted: Grounding in Meaning, Relational Healing Through Presence, Cultivating Awe, Gratitude, and Reflection, and Resilience Through Reframing Suffering. Together, these practices show how caregivers can nurture their own wholeness, ensuring that the work of caring for others also sustains and heals themselves.
1:30 pm
Plenary 1: Integrating Nursing Science and Spiritual Care: A Grounded Theory on Women's Recovery After Religious Trauma
Dr. Beth K. Schwartz, PhD, RN, PHN, MAT
​UCLA and the University of San Francisco
This session explores a trauma-informed, grounded theory developed through nursing research on women’s recovery after adverse religious experiences. Dr. Beth K. Schwartz integrates nursing science and spiritual care to illuminate the process by which women reclaim voice, agency, and wholeness after religious trauma. Participants will gain insight into the six-phase Discovering Self healing model and its implications for holistic, compassionate care.
3:15 pm
Workshop Series A
A1 - Spiritual Care in Pediatric Behavioral Health: A Collaborative Model
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A2 - Introduction to Fire Service Culture for Chaplains
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A3 - Offering AID: A Chaplain Led Intervention for Debriefing Critical Incidents
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A4 - From Boomers to Zoomers: Navigating Generational Differences for Effective Faith Community Nursing
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A5 - Commons-Based Contemplation: Collective Existential Care as Liberation Practice
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A6 - Compassionate Communication Initiative: Sharing Chaplain Communication Skills with RNs & CNAs
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A7 - Spiritual Pain: What is it and how to find healing
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4:30 pm
Workshop Series B
B1 - Emergency Preparedness for People with Disabilities
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B2 - The Special Role of Chaplains in the Pastoral Care of People Experiencing Mental Health Conditions in Themselves or Their Loved Ones
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B3 - Exploring the Barriers and Supports of Faith Community Nurses |Faith Community Nurses Address the Challenge of Vaccine Hesitancy
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B4 - Promoting Nurses’ Self-efficacy to Administer Whole Person Care: Through Education, Implementation and Utilization of Spiritual Screening Tools and Resources
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B5 - Who Wants to Live Forever? Longevity and Immortality in Science Fiction
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B6 - A Whole Soul-Creating a Practical Framework for Moral Injury Repair
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B7 - Cultural Diversity in Spiritual Care: A Foundational Pillar for Whole-Person Healing
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4:30 pm
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Faith Community Nurse Coordinator Meeting (by invitation only)
Facilitated by NickCaryn Paulos, Wendy Zimmerman, and Beverly Bateman
Day Two
Tuesday, April 21, 2026
All Times US Eastern Time
9:30 am
Westberg World Forum Meeting(by invitation only)
10:30 am
Facilitated by Pam Dandre and Deb Ziebarth
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Awards Ceremony, Board Certifications and Capstone University Virtual Graduation
Join us to celebrate the chaplains who have achieved Credentialing (CC), Board Certification (BCC), and Advanced Practice Board Certification (APBCC), and to congratulate the 2025 graduating class of Capstone University.
11:30 am
Plenary 2: William Stafford's Legacy in Contemporary Healthcare Chaplaincy
Joel Nightingale Berning, MDivV, BCC, ACPE
Chaplain Berning is Director of Spiritual Care and Chaplaincy at New York-Presbyterian Hospital
The session will explore how chaplains have explicitly drawn on the writing of American poet, William Stafford’s to support and challenge their chaplaincies. It will then propose next steps toward integrating Stafford’s naturalism and peacemaking into spiritual care.
1:30 pm
Plenary 3: On a Journey with Granger Westberg: Faith Community Nursing and Spiritual Care Nursing
Dr. Deborah Ziebarth, PhD, MSN Ed, RN-BC, Director of the Westberg Institute
Starting with Granger Westberg and Faith Community Nursing, a Conceptual Analysis on Spiritual Care Nursing emerges. Empirical referents or key skills of Spiritual Care Nurses will provide the basis for spiritual care nursing training. Nurses in clinical settings need additional training to recognize and deliver spiritual care interventions as a member of the spiritual care team. Place matters, whether a faith community or hospital setting, spiritual care is delivered with cultural knowledge and sensitivity.
3:15 pm
Workshop Series C
C1 - Staff Support in the Wake of Workplace Violence
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C2 - Chaplains Working at the Cutting Edge: An Introduction to Psychodynamically
Informed Clinical Chaplaincy​​
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C3 - REACH: Reaching out to Offer Hope and Receive Hope
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C4 - The Impact of a Congregational Health Team in Walking with Church Members on the Path of Life Transitions from Home to Assisted Living and Skilled Care
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C5 - Sacred Space for Holistic Practice: Healing Circles as a Tool for Faith Community Nursing
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C6 - Mindfulness Practices as a Pathway to Peace at End of Life
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C7 - Exploring the Gaps in Physician Medical Student Training Around
Spiritual Care, Screenings & Dialogue Around Interest in Research
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4:30 pm
Workshop Series D
D1 - Alongside: Hospice and Palliative Care Team Development and Trainings
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D2 - The Art of Soul Care -Lessons Learned from St. Martin of Tours and Sun Tzu
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D3 - Assessing Continuing Education Needs of Faith Community Nurses
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D4 - The Courage to Care: Leadership, Advocacy, and the Nurse Responsibility
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D5 - Grief and Loss: How it Impacts Life!
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D6 - Group Spiritual Direction: Discerning Aspects of Your Relationships and Communications for Healing and Renewal
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D7 - Why We Can't Meditate: A Psychology of Meditation
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D8 - Walking the Sacred Path Virtually — Virtual Pilgrimage for Spiritual Care and Human Flourishing
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5:45 pm
Faith Community Nursing Educator’s Meeting
Facilitated by Nicki Ayer, Sondra Weinzierl, and Beverly Bateman
Day Three
Wednesday, April 22, 2026
All Times US Eastern Time
9:00 am
FCNs Without a Network Meeting
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Facilitated by Deb Ziebarth
10:00 am
SCA Annual Meeting of the Membership
(SCA Members only)
11:00 am
Workshop Series E
E1 - Sacred Stories, Healing Symbols: Archetypal Approaches to Inclusive Spiritual Care
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E2 - Advanced Spiritual Care Practitioners (Chaplaincy & Wellbeing)
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E3 - Compensation of the Faith Community Nurse
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E4 - Whole Person Wellness Screening for Seniors using Nursing Students
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E5 - Spiritual Connection in the Midst of Brain Changes from Dementia
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E6 - Spiritual Resiliency Awareness Response Kindness (SPARK): A Caring and Compassion Model for Faith Leaders and Chaplains to Support First Responders Experiencing Trauma, Stress, Anxiety, Depression​
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E7 - Introduction of the revised Faith Community Nursing Scope and Standards of Practice, 4th Edition, 2025
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12:30 pm
Plenary 4: Integrating Spiritual Care into Health Systems: A Latin American Perspective
Rev. Jorge Espinel APBCC- HPC
Clínica Imbanaco – Pediatric Hematology-Oncology and Palliative Care Program (Cali, Colombia)
This session explores how spiritual care is being integrated into health systems across Latin America. It identifies key barriers to integration and presents practical strategies that have proven effective in integrating spiritual care into the healthcare system through interdisciplinary collaboration and culturally sensitive, person-centered approaches.
2:00 pm
Closing Remarks
Note: Agenda subject to change. Changes will be announced in advance.
All times listed are Eastern Time (US).