Healing Presence Dialogue Seminars for Healthcare Providers
“An aide bathes an elderly woman who lies in a nursing home bed. The woman seems alert but cannot speak. With great care the aide gives the woman a bath and shampoos her hair, talking softly, moving gently. Tasks complete, the aide sits for a few moments beside the woman’s bed, holding and stroking her hand. That is healing presence.”(Stories from The Art of Being a Healing Presence by James E. Miller and Susan C. Cutshall)
“A choir director listens to a pianist share her story of how MS (multiple sclerosis) robbed her ability to play piano years ago, believing that she would never play again. Then, several years ago, her MS receded from her hands and now resides in her hip and forces her to limp when walking. She now plays the piano as if each time it’s her last. The director listens to her story, holds her hands and looks silently into her face as tears well up in her eyes. They stay silent for a few moments and then the choir director thanks the pianist for sharing her story. That is healing presence.” (From Pokorny Consulting)
Perhaps you have known someone like the aide or choir director. Perhaps you’ve had a similar experience or someone was present to you in this manner in your time of need. That’s what this seminar is about – how can we be present to one another so that these kinds of experiences can be encouraged and nurtured.
“Healing presence is the condition of being consciously and compassionately in the present moment with another or with others, believing in and affirming their potential for wholeness, wherever they are in life.” (From The Art of Being a Healing Presence by James E. Miller and Susan C. Cutshall).
You can be a healing presence, for example, while performing a medical procedure, as you admit a patient, as you listen to a co-worker's struggle with cancer or in dealing with an elder parent, as you care for others’ physical, emotional, or spiritual needs, while you’re working beside someone or simply enjoying another’s company. The possibilities are limitless.
Healing Presence Dialogue Seminar for Healthcare Providers
In this seminar, I invite you to dialogue and learn about being a healing presence in your daily work. This seminar is primarily for people in the healthcare fields including hospitals, nursing homes, retirement communities, hospice, medical clinics, home health, nursing and medical students.
As a healthcare provider, ask yourself:
- What does “healing presence” mean in your profession?
- How can I know the suffering of my patients who I care for?
- How can I learn simple things to do to improve interactions with patients?
- How can I be a healing presence without adding more to my work demands?
As a healthcare administrator, ask yourself:
- Do I want our facility to be viewed as a “caring facility?”
- Do I want to improve caring relationships with patients and their families?
- Do I want to reduce turnover of healthcare providers and provide better patient care?
- Do I want our healthcare providers to live our organization’s values?
As a result of this dialogue seminar, you will be ready to:
- Embark on your journey of being a healing presence in your work.
- Apply the steps for being a healing presence in your work or life.
- Live your organization's values with more purposeful intention.
Your journey is based on the book The Art of Being a Healing Presence. We ask that you read this book before attending the seminar, which are part dialogue and the practice of being a healing presence. The seminar is designed for 12 people up to 20. Why? The basis for the learning is dialogue – sharing of stories, reflecting on questions, applying content from the book, and being a healing presence to others in the group. In addition, ill patients' stories from Patient Listening will be read to engage healthcare providers to understand care from the perspective of the patient. Kevin Pokorny will facilitate the dialogue experience.
Workshop materials:
- Each participant will read before attending the seminar The Art of Being a Healing Presence by James E. Miller, 2001. The price of the book is included in the seminar fee. Each participant will receive several questions with the book to reflect on, which will be part of the dialogue.
- Dramatic readings from Patient Listening by Loreen Herwaldt, 2008. Books will be available to purchase at the seminar.
Seminar length:
- 3 hours
- Time can be flexible depending upon needs of participants.
Group size:
- Prefer 12-20 participants. Content can be tailored for conference workshops or presentations, or classroom presentations.