Clinical Pastoral Education

Program Overview

With a history of more than 40 years, the accredited Association for Clinical Pastoral Education, Inc. (ACPE) program is well integrated into the life and mission of Yale-New Haven Hospital. CPE students are considered valued members of the interdisciplinary patient care team, and are called upon regularly by the hospital staff to assist in patient care. It is common for CPE students to be invited to family meetings and/or ethics consultations.

CPE students work alongside staff chaplains within a large, multi-faith department of Religious Ministries. Staff chaplains are assigned as mentors to CPE students, supplying counsel, consultation and back-up. CPE students participate in regularly scheduled departmental meetings and retreats.

The CPE program at Yale-New Haven Hospital takes advantage of resources available through Yale University, including Yale Divinity School and Yale Schools of Medicine and Nursing. Students can attend lectures on a variety of issues including medical ethics, theology and humanities in medicine.

Each unit of CPE consists of at least 400 hours of training, 100 of which are spent in group and individual supervision. The curriculum is based on the clinical method of learning, utilizing information from the actual practice of ministry as the content for reflection.

Group work involves:

• Student presentations of pastoral visits
• Interdisciplinary presentations of conceptual material relating to ministry
• Reflection upon interpersonal relationships and group dynamics
• Integration of theological doctrine with pastoral encounters

In addition, students have the opportunity to specify individual learning goals. The student group consists of four to six participants for each program. An effort is made to convene a group that represents diversity, e.g. gender, ethnic, age, theological, etc. Clinical assignments are available in a variety of services including:

• Oncology
• Cardiology
• Surgery
• Neuroscience
• Psychiatry
• General Medicine
• Emergency
• Maternity
• Pediatrics

Summer Program

Designed primarily for seminary students, this full-time, 10 week program (Level I), begins after Memorial Day and ends in early August. Each student is assigned to three to four patient units and is responsible for four periods of 24-hour on-call duty per month. Tuition for the program is $600. Prerequisites include a college degree and some theological education or training.

Extended Programs (offered periodically)

For Pastoral Caregivers
This part-time program is designed for clergy, lay persons, chaplains and others interested in pastoral care. Beginning in early October and running until April, this extended program meets one day per week for group work and requires an additional ten hours a week of supervised pastoral caregiving. Five periods of 24-hour on-call coverage at Yale-New Haven Hospital are also required. Tuition for the program is $600. Prerequisites include a college degree or professional experience as well as some theological education.

For Health Care Professionals
This part-time program is designed for health care professionals who are interested in integrating spiritual care into their clinical practices. Beginning in early January and running through May, this extended program meets one day per week for group work and requires an additional 16 hours a week of clinical work which incorporates spiritual care (or 8 hours a week of clinical work for ½ unit). Tuition for this program is $800. Applicants to this program are expected to be well established within their clinical discipline and to have the recommendation of their clinical supervisors.

Residency Program

This nine-month, full-time program of three units (Levels I and II), is offered for clergy, lay persons and others interested in specialization in pastoral care or preparation for professional chaplaincy. The residency program begins in early September and concludes the end of May. Between units, students have the opportunity to enjoy 10 days of vacation (plus five holidays). Students are assigned to three to four patient units in the hospital and are responsible for four periods of 24-hour on-call duty per month. The stipend is competitive; tuition is $100 per unit. Basic medical insurance is available free of charge. Prerequisites include a college degree, theological education or training (Master of Divinity preferred) and completion of one unit of CPE.

Supervisors

The Rev. Susan L. Asher is an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA). She has a M.Div. from Princeton Theological Seminary and a B.S. from Susquehanna University.

The Rev. Margaret D. Lewis is an ordained minister in the American Baptist Church. She has a M.Div. from Yale Divinity School, a M.A.T. from Harvard and a B.S. from Simmons College.

Each supervisor is certified by The Association for Clinical Pastoral Education, Inc.

Application Process

Individuals applying for all CPE programs should use the standard ACPE application form (no application fee required). Applicants should provide the Yale-New Haven Hospital Reference Form for Clinical Pastoral Education, to three references. These reference forms should be returned directly to the CPE Supervisor. Applications will not be considered complete until the full application, along with three references, are received. Applications are processed in a timely manner, normally on a first come, first served basis. The CPE center reserves the right to hold applications for processing at a later date. If an application is being held, this information will be conveyed to the applicant. There are no deadlines for applications, although applicants should contact the supervisor to inquire about the availability of spaces. Once the full application is received, the CPE Supervisor will make a decision about an interview. An on-site admission interview is required for all programs except in certain situations where travel is prohibitive. In that case a proxy interview may be submitted. Applicants will be notified by mail of their acceptance or rejection within a reasonable amount of time.

Download Forms (Word format)

• CPE Application Form
• CPE Reference Form

Contact Information

Inquiries and Applications:
Summer, Extended, Residency
The Reverend Susan L. Asher
Department of Religious Ministries
Yale-New Haven Hospital
20 York Street
New Haven, CT 06510-3202
Phone: (203) 688-2151
Fax: (203) 688-3478
E-mail: susan.asher@ynhh.org

CPE for Health Care Professionals
The Reverend Margaret D. Lewis
Department of Religious Ministries
Yale-New Haven Hospital
20 York Street
New Haven, CT 06510-3202
Phone: (203) 688-2151
Fax: (203) 688-3478
E-mail: peg.lewis@ynhh.org

FAQs

Satellite Program

Greenwich Hospital
The Greenwich CPE Program was founded in September 2000 as a satellite of the Department of Religious Ministries at Yale-New Haven Hospital and benefits from the support and resources of their CPE programs and supervisors. As a teaching hospital and part of the Yale New Haven Health System, Greenwich Hospital is committed to training healthcare professionals. Teaching occupies a significant focus of the mission of the hospital and Department of Spiritual Care. CPE students interact in small inter-professional training seminars with medical students, interns and residents.

The program is designed to be community based. The town of Greenwich has a population of 61,100 with a wide range of human services and resources, offering exposure to the full continuum of care provided by both healthcare and the religious community. The CPE program currently offers placement opportunities in Greenwich Hospital, in three area nursing homes with a combined bed capacity of 600, and in local congregational settings by arrangement.

Offering only extended units of CPE; the program attracts a balance of seminarians (commuters to one of several seminaries in the wider New York area), clergy from the community seeking continuing education or credentialing for chaplaincy, and lay persons in vocational discernment. The program is open to Level I and Level II students. The Level II students assume greater independent responsibility, working with Level II Objectives and Outcomes, pursuing an administrative or interdisciplinary project, interacting with hospital or nursing home staff and teaching at least one didactic seminar for their peers.

CPE chaplain interns usually have two geographical sites with a diversity of clientele for their clinical assignments, e.g. nursing home and hospital, or religious congregation and hospital. If a student contracts to do five of their ten "clinical hours" in a local congregation, they must have established clear goals for supervised learning in that setting. There must be an on-site liaison available to the student in the congregation. The other five clinical hours must be spent in either the hospital or nursing home setting.

In the hospital students are assigned to one or two inpatient units (depending on the number of students and needs of the inpatient units). Each chaplain intern is assigned to units offering a range of clinical experience, from intensive care to longer term acute care to the management of chronic illness. Chaplain interns are considered the primary chaplains for their assigned units. Staff chaplains are designated as attending chaplains for each service and provide back-up to chaplain interns. Responsibilities of the chaplain intern include pastoral care to patients, family members and staff. Attempts are made to accommodate student requests for specific clinical assignments that will facilitate their work on their learning goals. Each student is on-call for the hospital for three weekends over the course of the unit of training.

The Rev. Catherine F. Garlid is an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ. She has a M.Div. from Yale Divinity School and a B.A. from the University of Washington.

For the application process, see above.

Greenwich Hospital site.

For inquiries specific to the Greenwich Extended Unit Program contact:

The Reverend Catherine F. Garlid
Department of Spiritual Care
Greenwich Hospital
Perryridge Road
Greenwich, CT 06830
Phone: (203) 863-3146
Fax: (203) 863-4555
E-mail: kittyg@greenhosp.org

Last revised: Aug. 22, 2008 (dh)

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