Spiritual Health
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center Spiritual Health staff provide respectful, spiritual and emotional care to people of all faiths and spiritualities, including those who identify themselves as nonreligious or nonspiritual. We will talk with you in a supportive and inquiring manner, rather than impose a perspective on you. We are always available for urgent needs. Your nurse, social worker or another care team member can connect you with us.
Chaplaincy care (spiritual, religious, emotional, existential care) is available at any stage of your treatment process for patients treated at the South Lake Union Clinic and University of Washington Medical Center.
How we care for patients and families
We are committed to responding to every referral in a timely manner and making follow-up visits with patients and family members on a regular basis. Because we are unable to visit every Fred Hutch patient, we rely upon patients, families, friends, and faith communities to let us know about someone who would benefit from our visit.
Illness can be a painful, frightening, and isolating experience full of uncertainties and loss. Sometimes illness can push one to the point of experiencing spiritual and emotional chaos, pain and distress. But it can also be an opportunity to celebrate, change and experience expressions of being cared for in new ways.
Spiritual Health welcomes the opportunity to be:
- A companion on your journey
- An empathic listener
- A conversational partner as you seek, question or explore
- A comforter as you grieve
- A sounding board as you make tough decisions
- A conversational partner to talk about dying, death and afterlife
- A celebrator when you have good news
- A provider of religious rituals such as anointing, communion, prayer and blessings
- A resource for inspirational literature, sacred texts and meditation tapes
- A connector to a local faith community, including places of worship
- A partner in guiding your legacy work. Legacy work (PDF)
In addition to the resources our Spiritual Health staff have to offer patients and their families, there is also a Sanctuary available to all at the South Lake Union clinic.
Information about Fred Hutch Sanctuary
The Sanctuary is open for quiet time, prayer, meditation and reflection that can be vital to well-being and wholeness. It has been temporarily relocated to the third floor of our South Lake Union Clinic.
As a refuge for those who are hurting, the Sanctuary is a place of retreat while actions are being taken to help bring healing. People of all faiths and spiritualities are welcome.
As a sacred space, the Sanctuary is a place where patients, families, and staff can feel more connected to themselves, their traditions, or the source of their spirituality.
Who we are
Spiritual Health is staffed with board-certified chaplains. This means that we are accountable to the institution, to a national certifying body, and to a particular faith tradition. Minimal requirements are a professional master’s degree in theological studies, one year of full-time clinical education in a health care setting, and endorsement by a faith group. We follow a code of ethics that requires respectful care for all people.
- Stephen King, Manager
- Trina Banks, Spiritual Health clinician
- Amanda Hanssen, Spiritual Health clinician
- Juliana Perez, Spiritual Health clinician
- Rae Wiseman, Spiritual Health clinician
- JoAn Choi, Spiritual Health clinician for Catholic inpatients
Families with a child who is an inpatient at Seattle Children’s
Seattle Children's has staff and on-call chaplains to provide spiritual care and emotional support for you and your child.
Spiritual self-assessment
Responding to the questions in this self-assessment can be helpful as a private exercise or an exploration with others as you reflect on your life and your beliefs. We want to be respectful of you. As you use this tool, you may want to substitute different terms more suitable to your tradition and beliefs. If you would like to explore with someone else, you are invited to contact Spiritual Health. You can reach us at (206) 606-1099 or pastoral@seattlecca.org.
