Mary Jo Kreitzer, director of complementary care and The Center for Spirituality and Healing, said there is a growing interest in alternative and spiritual care methods among medical institutions. Last year, the center launched a research initiative for integrating these methods into medical school programs. Besides investigating such therapies as acupuncture, healing touch or ancient Chinese medicinal rituals, the center also focuses on increased use of chaplains as part of a health care team. They recognize the importance of the mind and the spirit component of healing. She cited growing bodies of research and a higher level of interest on the part of consumers and health care professionals as reasons for the boost in alternative care.
Healing is much more about wholeness.
In some ways, maybe you could say it's a search for meaning. Chaplains can bring that meaning at the beginning of a medical procedure or diagnosis, rather than being called in when someone is dying. Using chaplains as part of a health care team can help patients develop coping skills for the life changes their illness might provoke. Kreitzer stressed that using spiritual healing practices is not an opportunity for a health care professional or chaplain to impose their own beliefs on patients. Instead, doctors and chaplains focus on learning about a patient's beliefs and how to support them.