Digest This: Healthcare professionals and grief
Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009
By: Maiken Scott
mscott@whyy.org
Digest This is a weekly, hour-long online discussion hosted by WHYY's Health and Science team. Join us every Tuesday at noon. Log in at lunchtime to pose questions to experts and our reporters, voice opinions, and connect to people with similar concerns.
THIS WEEK'S TOPIC: Healthcare professionals and grief
Suffering and death are a regular part of the work day for many healthcare professionals. They struggle with their own grief, sense of loss and maybe failure, anger, and disappointment – all as they communicate with panicked or bereaved families, and try to care for other patients. Often, their hectic schedules don't allow time to rest for a moment, and deal with their emotions.
Several local hospitals are addressing this issue by encouraging open discussions among healthcare professionals; establishing monthly meetings, or "Grief Rounds".
We will be joined by three professionals who facilitate such discussions – and want to hear from healthcare professionals and consumers alike.
What helps healthcare professionals deal with grief – how do you cope? When your family was experiencing a medical crisis, what are some things the healthcare professionals did that were helpful? Or what do you wish they would have done?
Let's get a conversation started!
When: 12:00 noon Tues, Oct 27
Where: Right here. Click the button in the right sidebar review an archive of the chat.
Moderator: Maiken Scott
Our guests are:
Florence Gelo, D.MIN., NCPsyA, Associate Professor in the Department of Family, Community and Preventive Medicine at Drexel University. Dr. Florence Gelo has been a pastoral psychotherapist and psychoanalyst for over 25 years. She is the Behavioral Science Coordinator for the Family Medicine Residency Program, and the Director of the Humanities Scholar's Program, at Drexel University College of Medicine.
Horace DeLisser, MD, Pulmonary and Critical Care Specialist, University of Pennsylvania
Dr. Horace DeLisser has also been interested in medical ethics, end-of-life issues, cultural competency and religion and spirituality in medicine. He is currently the Assistant Dean for Spirituality and Cultural Competency in the U Penn School of Medicine and has been very active in medical education.
Linda B. Welsh, Ed.D., is a therapist and directs the Anxiety and Agoraphobia Treatment Center in Bala Cynwyd. She is the Co-Director of Professionalism Education at the University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, and facilitates discussions among healthcare professionals across our region.
Would you like a reminder? Enter your email address in the form in the right sidebar, choose a reminder time and click set.
If you miss the live discussion, an archive if it will be available on this page.
This was a very important discussion. Physicians and staff do not live in isolation. More than likely, if they do not deal with their own grief experiences in their lives it will be triggered by a patient. The re-triggering may look like an over reaction to a patient's death or the physician/staff may seek substances to quell the pain. I hope that physicians and staff will utilize good self care techniques (exercise, diet, mindfulness, sleep, finding joy)as discussed today. I also hope that they will see grief as an opportunity to grow both on a personal and professional level.
I encourage helping professionals to try Journaling for healing (James Pennebaker) or Belleruth Naprastek's guided imagery CDs for grief. It is beuatiful and can be very healing if you feel you have no one to talk to about pain at work. The most popular exercise on my healing retreat is almost always the Walking Meditation so I think taking a walk in nature can be VERY renewing. We all need to take as excellent care of ourselves as we try to take of our patients. We are worth it!