TY - JOUR
T1 - “Life Within the Person Comes to The Fore”
T2 - Pastoral Workers’ Practice Wisdom on Using Arts in Palliative Care
AU - O’Callaghan, Clare
AU - Byrne, Libby
AU - Cokalis, Eleni
AU - Glenister, David
AU - Santilli, Margaret
AU - Clark, Rose
AU - McCarthy, Therese
AU - Michael, Natasha
PY - 2018/7/1
Y1 - 2018/7/1
N2 - Background: Pastoral care (also chaplaincy, spiritual care) assists people to find meaning, personal resources, and connection with self, others, and/or a higher power. Although essential in palliative care, there remains limited examination of what pastoral workers do. This study examined how pastoral workers use and consider the usefulness of art-based modalities. Methods: Qualitative research was used to examine the practice wisdom (tacit practice knowledge) of pastoral workers experienced in using visual arts and music in palliative care. Two focus groups were conducted. Thematic analysis was informed by grounded theory. Results: Six pastoral workers shared information. Three themes emerged. First, pastoral workers use arts as “another tool” to extend scope of practice by assisting patients and families to symbolically and more deeply contemplate what they find “sacred.” Second, pastoral workers’ art affinities inform their aims, assessments, and interactions. Third, pastoral workers perceive that art-based modalities can validate, enlighten, and transform patients and families through enabling them to “multisensorially” (through many senses) feel recognized, accepted, empowered, and/or close to God. Key elements involved in the work’s transformative effects include enabling beauty, ritual, and the sense of “home” being heard, and legacy creation. Discussion and Conclusion: Pastoral workers interpret that offering art-based modalities in palliative care can help patients and families to symbolically deal with painful memories and experiences, creatively engage with that deemed significant, and/or encounter a sense of transcendence. Training in generalist art-based care needs to be offered in pastoral education.
AB - Background: Pastoral care (also chaplaincy, spiritual care) assists people to find meaning, personal resources, and connection with self, others, and/or a higher power. Although essential in palliative care, there remains limited examination of what pastoral workers do. This study examined how pastoral workers use and consider the usefulness of art-based modalities. Methods: Qualitative research was used to examine the practice wisdom (tacit practice knowledge) of pastoral workers experienced in using visual arts and music in palliative care. Two focus groups were conducted. Thematic analysis was informed by grounded theory. Results: Six pastoral workers shared information. Three themes emerged. First, pastoral workers use arts as “another tool” to extend scope of practice by assisting patients and families to symbolically and more deeply contemplate what they find “sacred.” Second, pastoral workers’ art affinities inform their aims, assessments, and interactions. Third, pastoral workers perceive that art-based modalities can validate, enlighten, and transform patients and families through enabling them to “multisensorially” (through many senses) feel recognized, accepted, empowered, and/or close to God. Key elements involved in the work’s transformative effects include enabling beauty, ritual, and the sense of “home” being heard, and legacy creation. Discussion and Conclusion: Pastoral workers interpret that offering art-based modalities in palliative care can help patients and families to symbolically deal with painful memories and experiences, creatively engage with that deemed significant, and/or encounter a sense of transcendence. Training in generalist art-based care needs to be offered in pastoral education.
KW - art
KW - chaplaincy
KW - music
KW - palliative care
KW - pastoral care
KW - qualitative research
KW - spiritual care
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85042174553&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1177/1049909117748881
DO - 10.1177/1049909117748881
M3 - Article
C2 - 29284277
AN - SCOPUS:85042174553
VL - 35
SP - 1000
EP - 1008
JO - American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine
JF - American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine
SN - 1049-9091
IS - 7
ER -