Educational and Clinical Expectations

Educational expectations: A blend of required and self-directed opportunities for learning

• Supervision
  • Weekly individual supervision with Manager of Chaplaincy
  • Once monthly mentoring with each of the staff chaplains (Mia, Jennifer, and Geila)
• Required reading [see “Bibliography”]
• Classes
  • Cancer 100 (7 weeks on Thursdays at noon for 1.5 hours beginning mid-September) is a class provided by Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC) for non-scientists about the scientific method, biology of cancer, experience of the cancer patient, etc.
• Periodic lectures in research ethics at FHCRC
• Occasional (as appropriate) Grand Rounds presentations at FHCRC, University of Washington Medical Center (UWMC), or Children’s Hospital
• Occasional (as appropriate) Brown Bag Ethics Lunches at UWMC and Cultural Diversity lectures at Children’s Hospital
• Continuing education time (5 days) and some money to offset cost provided
• Potentially be a teaching assistant for a 10 week course “Spirituality and Medicine” at the UW School of Medicine
• Potentially have medical students shadow and learn from the Fellow multiple times during the year
• Special Project at the end of the year
• Wednesday meetings
  • 1st Wednesdays of the month:
    • For six Wednesdays, we will read together a selected research paper regarding religion and health from the literature in order to learn how to understand research papers and the relevance of the research for our work or we read a published paper pertinent to our work for discussion. A statistician joins us for three of the research discussions to help educate us about the statistical piece of the research paper.
    • For four of the Wednesdays, we will look at medical record notes in order to improve both are charting and as a means to improve our care
  • 2nd Wednesdays of the month:
    • Focus upon Verbatim, “clinical reading” seminars, and case study seminars and discussions
    • Month A: Case conference in which the Fellow presents a verbatim of her/his work and reflection for discussion with the departmental chaplains
    • Month B: The Fellow takes a theme from the verbatim in Month A and then reads about that theme in theological and psychodynamic literature, bringing the clinical experience, reading, and reflection together in an integrated paper about the theme that has clinical relevance. The paper/theme is discussed with departmental chaplains.
    • Focus upon special topics
  • 3rd Wednesdays are staff meetings
  • 4th Wednesdays: Open agenda and flex schedule times
  • 5th Wednesdays: Meet with SCCA social workers
• Meet with numerous multi-disciplinary team members about their specialties, e.g., social work, nutrition, housing, cultural navigator, volunteer services, resource center, laboratory, radiology, Cancer Information Services, etc.
• Attention to the clinical, reflective, and spiritual dimensions of your life and work
• Evaluations: end of first trimester and end-of-year evaluations

Clinical Expectations

• An allogeneic and an autologous BMT Team (inpatient and outpatient)
• General oncology clinic work and/or inpatient general oncology)
• 75% of the Fellow’s time is clinical; 25% of the time is educational. This translates into a minimum of 18 - 20 hours of direct care (patient/family/staff visits, charting, care conferences, follow-up notes). Other clinical time will be staff meetings, shuttle rides, etc.
• On-Call
  • After hours call: Fellow will participate in the after hours on-call rotation along with four other chaplains, both for the SCCA and for the occasional time for all of UWMC
  • Day call: Fellow will also be the weekday on-call chaplain when the assigned chaplain is not working that day. The responsibilities include changing the pager settings daily, receiving more emergent referrals and giving them to the appropriate SCCA chaplain, and some emergency coverage for chaplains who are out when we do not have per diem coverage.