Spiritual Care

Open Hearts Exceptional Care

 
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Spiritual Care

Life Choice chaplains leave their own faith practices at the doors of patients’ rooms and meet the patients’ spiritual needs.

Sometimes patients want prayer to nurture their spirits. Sometimes, it’s a chocolate chip cookie and a companion to hold their hand.

Our chaplains believe the spirit is nurtured in many ways including religion, music, art, life review, and simply by compassionate presence.

Our clinically trained chaplains receive their training through hospitals and other sites approved by the Association for Clinical Pastoral Educators (ACPE). Their CPE training is Interfaith and multicultural.

During patient meetings, our chaplains collaborate with their team of social workers, nurses, and volunteer coordinators to create highly individualized plans of care that are designed to meet the specific needs of our patients and families.

We do not use the word “team” lightly at Life Choice. A true team approach is the foundation of our individualized care.

Our chaplains offer:

  • Bereavement and anticipatory grief support
  • Spiritual counseling
  • Life review
  • Music
  • Religious support, including prayer and collaboration with community clergy
  • Memorial services
  • Spiritual nurturing through our Tapestries approach

Spiritual Gifts

A 93-year-old patient, who refused to get out of bed and was belligerent to the nursing home staff, changed his tune when our hospice chaplain took the time to listen to his story and make a personal connection with him. After learning that the patient formerly led a Catholic rosary group, the chaplain arranged for him to lead a similar rosary group at the nursing home, and he now leads others in prayer every week, joyful with his renewed life purpose. "I guess God had to let me get sick so I would end up here to lead this rosary group," he said. "It makes sense to me now."

NIJH Accreditation

National Institue for Jewish Hospice AccreditedLife Choice Hospice has completed the requirements and is accredited in NJ, PA and CT by the National Institute for Jewish Hospice.

NIJH Accreditation means our hospice team is capable of meeting the needs of Jewish patients including all religious and ethnic observers and is adequately trained in the Jewish culture, traditions and in the Jewish aspects of consolation and bereavement.

For more information on Hospice for our Jewish patients, please refer to our booklet in the Learn About portion of our website.