Workshop Series D

D1                                                                               Alongside: Hospice and Palliative Care Team Development and Training

Nate Gustafson

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Workshop Summary:                                                                                         Hospice and Palliative Care (HPC) wants to help all patients and families experience a peaceful and pain-free journey through advanced and terminal illness. However, many staff and volunteers  get wiped out by the emotional and spiritual toll in this field. Staff are given processes and procedures, but not a pathway to purpose. Teams are barely surviving, let alone thriving. We need more than information; we need formation. This presentation will introduce the Alongside Model of formation. Alongside is a pathway to purpose; transforming teams and changing lives. This model unfolds in stages starting at the onboarding process and through intentional seasons for personal development. The benefits are greater resilience, higher priority for whole-person care, and a reduction in turnover due to burnout and compassion fatigue. As team members grow through this process, they begin to care and connect to the underlying emotional and spiritual needs that were previously untouched.

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D2
The Art of Soul Care - Lessons Learned from St. Martin of Tours and Sun Tzu                                              CH (MAJ) Justin Lansdowne MA, MDIV, BCC, CPE-SE

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Workshop Summary:                                                                                               What if soul care is not only about being present, but about knowing how and when to show up? This breakout invites chaplains into a thoughtful and pastoral conversation between two unlikely teachers: St. Martin of Tours and Sun Tzu. St. Martin’s simple act of cutting his cloak to clothe a beggar reminds us that small, timely gestures can carry deep spiritual weight. His story invites reflection on the moments when care becomes both gift and protection. Alongside this witness, selected insights from Sun Tzu’s Art of War are gently reframed, not to militarize ministry, but to offer language for discernment, awareness, and wise response. Ideas such as reading the terrain, stewarding limited energy, and choosing timing over force help chaplains think intentionally about how care is offered in complex environments.This session is reflective, practical, and conversational. It invites participants to consider soul care that is tender and tactical, rooted in pastoral presence and guided by wisdom. Whether serving in crisis, institution, or community, chaplains will leave with renewed imagination for offering care that is faithful, intentional, and sacred.

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D3
Assessing Continuing Education Needs of Faith Community Nurses                                                         Sondra Weinzierl, MA, RN

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Workshop Summary:

This workshop will present the results of a 2024 needs assessment of faith community nurses' nursing diagnoses and interventions as a method for determining continuing education needs of FCNs.  Strategies for using the survey data to provide relevant continuing education will be shared.

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D4
The Courage to Care: Leadership, Advocacy, and the Nurse Responsibility
Angel Harris, MSN, RN

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Workshop Summary:                                                                                                   An interactive and reflective training designed to inspire and equip nurses to lead with compassion, advocate for justice, and embrace their professional responsibility to create positive change. Whether you're at the bedside, in the boardroom, or out in the community, this training will strengthen your ability to lead with love, act with purpose, and uphold the call of nursing as a force for healing and equity.

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D5
Grief and Loss: How it impacts life!                                Rev. Dawn E. Oryszak

Workshop Summary:                                                                                                 Everyone grieves differently, we will review the basics of bereavement/ definitions and levels of grief (Kubler-Ross, Kessler) also the factors that influence the grieving process such as: The relationship you had with your loved one, The nature of the death, Your personality, Your physical health, Your phase of life, Your life, Your support system.  Also being aware of signs Your deceased loved one might be visiting you from beyond. With establishing this direction of thought we will then broaden the scope of this topic with interactive discussions on alternative research.      With my 30+ years within the areas of: hospice, clinical pastoral,  my experience with death and dying, educational background in CPE, my speaking on grief and loss at an abuse rehab center as well as Roswell Cancer Center, I will offer a concise and compassionate discussion during this/these session(s).

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D6
Group Spiritual Direction: Discerning Aspects of Your Relationships and Communications for Healing and Renewal                                                                                 Linda S. Golding MA, BCC

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Workshop Summary:                                                                                     Chaplains and nurses are at the center of a swirl that is a constantly moving and evolving collection of chaotic conditions as they look after the spiritual well-being of those in their care.    What about your own spiritual well-being? Do you sense a yearning to cultivate your still, small voice ? This interactive workshop will provide an outline for creating a small group using employ contemplative and contemporary techniques to tune and amplify that still, small voice using liturgy, poetry, sacred writings, music, art; and a practical experience of sitting together to listen to ourselves and each other for healing and renewal.  No "fixing" required!

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D7
Why We Can't Meditate: A Psychology of Meditation   Joseph Van De Mortel

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Workshop Summary:                                                                                                 This workshop will highlight my extensive practice and knowledge as a teacher of meditation. It will touch on various philosophical, psychological, and spiritual elements of meditation and its problems. It will be defined by my book, and you are invited to read it in advance to understand my application of meditation and psychology as it may contribute to spiritual care.  It will apply an East-West appreciation to create a useful interfaith discourse on meditation.

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D8
Walking the Sacred Path Virtually, Virtual Pilgrimage for Spiritual Care and Human Flourishing                  James M Gehrke, MS, DMin

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Workshop Summary:                                                                                                 This 60-minute interactive workshop explores the transformative potential of virtual pilgrimage as a tool for spiritual care among healthcare professionals. Drawing on ancient pilgrimage practices adapted for the digital age, the session demonstrates how reflective walking, intentional silence, digital detox, and mindful community nurture the human spirit‚Äîfostering meaning, resilience, and connection, even for those unable to travel physically. Participants will experience and discuss evidence-based activities that promote spiritual well-being, support interprofessional teamwork, and honor the diversity of patients and caregivers. Attendees will leave with accessible strategies and tools to integrate virtual pilgrimage into personal, team, and patient care. The workshop includes hands-on reflection and group sharing, empowering participants to bring renewed purpose and inclusive spiritual care to their professional contexts.

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