EvenMORE For You

National Spiritual Care Week is October 18–24

We Appreciate our Chaplains’ Presence and Grace

While all members of an integrated hospice care team are tuned in to patients’ spiritual needs, it is our Crossroads Chaplains who take overall responsibility for the spiritual needs of both patients and their families. Our Chaplains provide steady companionship and comfort to patients and their loved ones in end-of-life care. 

Tomorrow is the first day of National Spiritual Care Week, which has been celebrated since 1985 when the National Association of Catholic Chaplains (NACC) established a formal week of recognition for those who handle the delicate task of helping patients and families navigate end-of-life care. 

When the NACC established National Spiritual Care Week, it had several goals:

• Promote continuing spiritual care education.
• Honor and celebrate Chaplains.
• Express appreciation to institutions and organizations who adopt professional spiritual care practices.

National Spiritual Care Week is an opportunity for us to recognize and appreciate our Chaplains who provide non-denominational comfort, counsel and a calming presence to patients and their loved ones, not just during a special week every year, but every day. We thank our Crossroads Chaplains!

The 7 Commandments of Spiritual Care

by Anonymous Crossroads Chaplain (2013)

A Chaplain never imposes his or her spiritual or religious beliefs upon a patient but supports the patient in their own faith (or decision to not profess any faith.) 

The patient can express what and where they hope to be and who they hope to see. If the patient finds comfort in their belief that death will mean no more suffering, the Chaplain also looks forward to that day of freedom. 

If the patient longs for the day on which they will see their Creator and be reunited with deceased loved ones, the Chaplain also rejoices in that.

Having hope that something will end or that something new will begin is a powerful force that can carry someone there.

1. Thou Shalt Allow the Patient and Family to TELL THE STORY
   The Chaplain should listen more than speak. Facts concerning a person’s history are important, but the information about a person’s birthplace, number of siblings, schooling, military service, marriage, children, occupation and religious affiliation cannot be truly appreciated until they are woven into “the story.” 
   
   
2. Thou Shalt Encourage the Patient and Family to REMEMBER THE GOOD 
   End of life is not the time to see the glass as half empty. As people evaluate their years they should be able to summarize their experiences as “a full life.” What keeps the glass full is choosing to remember all the good in one’s life. 
   
   
3. Thou Shalt Help the Patient or Family to DROP THE ROCK
   Anna Mae was an 82-year-old woman who spent 40 years carrying an emotional rock with her husband’s name on it. Charlie died unexpectedly at age 42 and left her to raise 10 children on her own. Because of her faith as a Baptist, Anna Mae said she looked forward to Heaven one day—not for eternal peace, but “to give Charlie a piece of my mind and what’s coming to him for leaving me all those years!”
   
   
4. Thou Shalt Ask the Patient and Family to EXPRESS THE LOVE
   With limited days and the patient’s diminishing health there is no time to waste. Now is the time to ask for forgiveness, to say “I’m sorry. I’m proud of you or I love you.” If possible one should not wait for tomorrow, the next holiday or birthday to express emotions. 
   
   
5. Thou Shalt Remind the Patient and Family to KEEP THE FAITH
   Crossroads believes in the importance of providing holistic (physical, emotional and spiritual) care through an interdisciplinary care team. When clinical support can no longer provide a preferred level of comfort, Chaplains guide patients and families back to their source of strength. 
   
   
6. Thou Shalt Join With the Patient and Family and CELEBRATE THE LIFE
   While a terminally ill patient is still with us it is essential to enjoy the company of loved ones and to participate in favorite activities in settings that are familiar and memorable.
   
   
7. Thou Shalt Reaffirm the Patient and Family’s HOPE FOR THE FUTURE

Eulogy for Dr. Ganz

By Danny Gutknecht

This is tough because I don’t really know what to say. I don’t even know if Ganz can hear me.

Dr. Ganz died when I was in my first year of college. Although I’m pretty sure he somehow died before that. I question whether the date matters.

I do know he was born when I was young, the year my grandparents bought me a plastic doctoring kit. My grandfather insisted I get acquainted early. The bag held a stethoscope, reflex hammer, and a thick, blunt syringe that couldn’t deliver a worthy shot.

A proper doctor needs proper instruments. So I swapped the plastic needle for one of my grandmother’s sharpest darning needles.

According to her report, she was innocently cooking dinner when I asked, “Grandma, can I give you a shot?”

“Yes, honey.”  Without turning around.

I asked a couple more times, “Are you sure?” before finally accepting her consent.

Getting through that summer dress took a solid jab. If you’ve never seen a 4’11" old lady with a 36-inch vertical, it’s a wild image.

I dropped the idea of becoming a doctor early in college. My first attempt to put Dr. Ganz to rest. Other images of who I might become had more pull. But he didn’t go away.

After college, I started and sold my first business, then became an executive recruiter. Recruiting, guess what? Physicians.

There I was, working with what we often consider the pinnacle of professions. I deeply respected all the training. But the people inside white coats still had lives they couldn’t always figure out how to live. Just like the rest of us.

I found myself diagnosing them, in a way. Looking at the life that didn’t fit inside the white coat. Even doctors could struggle to choose a better way of living over the foul medicine they knew.

Apparently, Ganz still had office hours.

It’s a weird feeling, standing here trying to bury him. The longer I talk, the less sure I am that anyone is in the casket. I realize now that this eulogy is for the other one: Dr. Ganz, M.D. The diplomas. The patients. The life I would have lived if I’d stayed with it. That life gets a funeral.

But the doctor that first climbed into that plastic medical bag? He keeps turning up. I’d mistaken him for a career, then mistaken leaving the career behind for leaving him behind.

Ganz is German for whole. We can’t be complete when we disown those very real parts of ourselves. Scuff them off as imagination. 

One of the most difficult things I’ve done is learning the difference between imagination and the imaginal. Imagination lets me rehearse arguments with people who haven’t said a word. I can supply both sides and always win.

Ganz is less cooperative. I tried writing him out of the story, and he kept finding his way back in. That’s what I mean by the imaginal: encountering something in myself that I have not invented and can’t dismiss. I have to listen. I can negotiate with him. Apparently, I can try to give him a funeral. But he keeps coming back, we have a relationship. And relationships can surprise us.

My grandmother thought she was humoring a child. I thought I was practicing medicine. We were both quite sure we knew what was happening.

I still catch myself entering a conversation with my diagnosis already made, my instruments ready. Then Ganz shows up, and I wonder what I haven’t asked. What I haven’t heard. I still don’t know if he hears me. But I’m pretty sure he’s been listening.

I’ve learned to turn around, toward the person in front of me, before I decide what they need. I think that’s how Ganz practices now.

Goals That Go Beyond the Job

By Emily Hammer

When most people hear the word goals, they immediately think of work. Metrics. Deadlines. Performance reviews. Numbers to hit, boxes to check. It’s almost like goals only exist in the land of spreadsheets and quarterly meetings.

Personally, goal setting gives me anxiety because:

1. I compare my goals to everyone else’s.
2. I set goals I don’t even believe I can achieve (because aren’t you supposed to “dream big?")
3. I feel pressure to reach goals immediately—if not sooner. I don’t even give the seed time to germinate before I’m already frustrated with myself.

But here’s the truth: goals don’t have to wear a suit.

Some of the most meaningful goals you’ll ever set don’t have anything to do with your job title. They’re not flashy, and they’ll never make your resumé. They’re the kinds of goals that shape who you are, how you feel, and how you show up for others.

Think about it:

• Giving three genuine compliments a day.
• Smiling at a stranger instead of scrolling on your phone.
• Choosing patience in traffic or a long checkout line.
• Drinking more water than soda.
• Choosing to listen rather than talk.
• Setting aside five minutes to breathe before the chaos begins.
• Giving thoughtful reflection to the kind of impact you want to make in your world. 

None of those will show up in your annual performance review, but every single one can change the tone of your day—and the energy you bring into the workplace. Those are the kinds of goals that actually move the needle.

Goals can (and should) stretch into other parts of life. Money goals like saving an extra $100 a month. Health goals like walking 20 minutes on your lunch break. Attitude goals like practicing gratitude or choosing to see problems as opportunities instead of burdens.

The beauty is these kinds of goals spill over. When you practice patience outside of work, you’re more likely to have patience inside of work. When you take care of your health, you bring more energy to the table. When you build financial stability, you carry less stress into meetings. And when you share these goals with others, you start a ripple effect.

We box ourselves into believing goals are only about climbing ladders or checking off tasks. But life isn’t separated into neat categories—work you and home you are the same person. Which means the goals you set in one area inevitably impact the other.

So maybe it’s time to zoom out and look at goals in a bigger, more human way. Not just “What do I want to accomplish at work this quarter?” but also “What kind of person do I want to be this week?”

Because sometimes the goal that changes your entire outlook isn’t “finish the report by Friday.” Sometimes it’s “say thank you more often.”

What’s one small, meaningful goal you can set today that feels good to YOU?