Continuing Education for Social Work

Fostering Spiritual and Transformational Growth Near the End of Life

FRIDAY, December 6, 2024
10:00 am – 1:00 pm (eastern time)
Live Webinar on Zoom
(You will need to register to receive login information)

Registration: 3 CEU Credit Hours

General:  Through Nov. 26, $75; Nov. 27-Dec. 5, $90

Wurzweiler Alumni and Current WSSW Field Instructors: Through Nov. 26, $60; Nov. 27-Dec. 5, $75

All Current Students: $15

Registration closes on 12/5/24 at 5:00 Eastern Time (EST)

Clergy, chaplains, social workers, and caregivers are often called on to provide care through a spiritual lens to individuals and families near life’s end. Whether in response to serious illness, advanced cognitive or physical decline in older age, suicide, or unexpected trauma, health care professionals and clergy often find themselves without the skills to respond compassionately and effectively with individuals and families who encounter spiritual, religious, or existential crises. 

Our keynote speaker, Dr. Lisa Miller, will examine the science of spiritual development and the protective benefits of spirituality to promote healing and growth and counter despair. Drawing on insights from the social work strengths perspective, transpersonal psychology, cross-cultural studies of rituals supporting life transitions, and Eastern and Western philosophy, Dr. Edward Canda will provide a theoretical framework for understanding the process of transformational growth through times of disruption, dislocation, death, and dying. 

Finally, Elder Angela Overton and Rabbi Dayle Friedman will offer inspiration to those caring for persons with serious illness and provide valuable resources for caregivers as they journey with hope for the persons for whom they care, while also caring for themselves.

Learning Objectives

Participants will be better equipped to:

1. Identify modalities applying a spiritual lens to treat adults with serious illness, cognitive impairment, and/or mental health diagnoses.
2. Understand the protective benefits of spirituality against the diseases of despair (such as addiction, depression, and suicide).
3. Apply a transcultural model of transformational growth in their work as professional helpers in the areas of spiritually sensitive social work, hospice, and palliative care.
4. Have meaningful dialogue and foster hope with those who are facing the triumphs and challenges of caregiving.
    

Lisa Miller, Ph.D., is a professor in the Clinical Psychology Program at Teachers College, Columbia University and the Founder and Director of the Spirituality Mind Body Institute, a research institute in spirituality and psychology. She has published over 100 peer-reviewed articles. Dr. Miller is the New York Times bestselling author of The Spiritual Child. She is the editor of the Oxford University Press Handbook of Psychology and Spirituality, Founding Co-Editor-in-Chief of the APA Journal of Spirituality in Clinical Practice, an elected Fellow of the American Psychological Association (APA), and the two-time President of the APA Society for Psychology and Spirituality. Dr. Miller received her PhD from the University of Pennsylvania.

Elder Angela Overton, M.Div. is an effective communicator of what it means to receive and share Divine Holy Love. She is passionate about the healthy development of people, particularly those who experience the ill effects of intentional structural racism. Elder Overton serves as Minister over Congregational Care & Institutional Development at Burnett Avenue Baptist Church in Louisville, KY. She is the Senior Advisor & Director of Faith Community Partnerships at the Coalition to Transform Advanced Care in Washington, DC, an organization dedicated to improving the lives of people impacted by serious illness.

Edward R. Canda, MA, MSW, PhD, is Professor Emeritus and Coordinator of the Spiritual Diversity Initiative in the School of Social Welfare at the University of Kansas. His work addresses connections between cultural diversity, spirituality, and transformational growth through adversity. He has more than 240 publications and has conducted about 300 presentations, many in East Asia and Central Europe. In 2013, Dr. Canda received the Council on Social Work Education’s Significant Lifetime Achievement Award for innovations on spirituality through scholarship and education. He promotes spiritually sensitive social work internationally.

Rabbi Dayle Friedman, MSW, is a Philadelphia-based rabbi, spiritual care professional, and teacher. In her professional practice, Growing Older, Rabbi Friedman provides support to those facing the challenges of aging, including frailty and dementia, as well as to their loved ones. She also counsels rabbis through the Central Conference of American Rabbis. Rabbi Friedman is the author of several books, including Jewish Wisdom for Growing Older: Finding Your Grit and Grace Beyond Midlife (2015) and Jewish End-of-Life Care in a Virtual Age: Our Traditions Reimagined (2021). She has been the spiritual leader of congregations in Philadelphia and Atlanta, and was founding director of chaplaincy services at the Philadelphia Geriatric Center.

PODCAST

Rabbis, chaplains, and social workers are often called on to provide spiritual care near life’s end. Whether in response to serious illness, advanced cognitive or physical decline in old age, or unexpected, tragic violence, health care professionals and clergy need to respond compassionately and effectively with families facing spiritual, emotional, and existential crises. Clips from Wurzweiler School of Social Work’s “Spirituality Near the End of Life” Conference in July 2019 include leading clergy, chaplains, and social workers offering their knowledge, skills, and wisdom to assist professionals seeking to better integrate spiritual care into their professional and community work.

Episode 1

Episode 2