Hospices are reaching an inflection point when it comes to breaking down communication barriers around spiritual care among underserved communities, according to William Williamson, who recently became the new director of faith outreach at AMOREM.
North Carolina-based AMOREM provides hospice care across 12 counties in the northwestern region of the state. The nonprofit hospice provider also offers palliative, grief support and advance care planning services.
AMOREM recently developed Williamson’s position out of growing recognition for spiritual engagement among diverse faith communities, according to the company’s executives.
Generational differences in spiritual outlooks may be impacting the ability for hospices to understand and address end-of-life goals of care, according to Williamson.
Seniors have historically had deeper roots in their belief systems and faith communities than younger generations, he recently told Hospice News in an interview. Hospices will need to pivot their community outreach strategies to bridge generational faith gaps and improve reach among caregivers, he said.
AMOREMWhat has been your experience in hospice thus far?
I was previously a chaplain supervisor, overseeing all of our spiritual care providers. Part of that was also maintaining relationships with faith facilities and congregations in the area and understanding what the community needs in areas of medical challenges and spiritual support. There was a gap that could be met there.
Is the director of faith outreach a newly developed role at AMOREM, or an existing position? What does the role involve?
We’ve had a bit of structure reorganization following the merger of Burke Hospice & Palliative Care and Caldwell Hospice and Palliative Care nearly two and a half years ago. The director of faith outreach position was created shortly after that, with chaplains now having a different supervisor, and my role located in the community engagement department.
The different domains were driven by some national trends, particularly those around religious life in America among older generations.
The majority of people attending and belonging to faith congregations on a regular basis tend to be elderly. Historically, when these individuals need support during times of illness, there has been multigenerational participation in caregiving roles.
Faith community members would be more available to help families navigate medical crises and the health care system. But there are less young people participating in religious communities, less volunteers to help elders and more seniors struggling with complicated medical care needs. We noticed more seniors in need, especially those in rural communities with younger Americans leaving these areas for work opportunities.
We recognized a greater degree of knowledge and understanding of the health care system and unmet medical needs. It is not uncommon to get calls from faith leaders trying to help find resources and care for someone in a medical crisis. We saw demand for someone who could act as that liaison between the religious and faith communities and the medical communities.
What are some of the roles and responsibilities of the director of faith outreach?
A vast majority of people wish to pass away at home, but most people do not. There’s a gap between what people would like and what happens. A predominant demand for this role is to educate people about their end-of-life care options, that’s probably about 60% of the job.
Because religious life is often elder life in America, it’s meeting those older congregations where they are. I’ll speak at congregations about what palliative care and hospice are, what an advanced directive is and options to consider in the end-of-life process. It’s providing that education to small and large groups in the community.
The other part of my role is a fair amount of liasoning between the medical and faith communities. It’s being available to the counties we serve in rural North Carolina, where so many decisions are made based on relationships and trust. It’s much easier to connect with us than a faceless health care provider.
Some folks still think that all hospices are the same, but that’s not the case. A large part of this job is making sure people understand what we offer, and that they have access to this resource of support. So it’s providing education, recognition and understanding when the time comes for this care.
What are some of the goals of this faith outreach? Where do you see hospice outreach efforts heading?
Director of faith outreach makes sense within the holistic philosophy of hospice. It allows a hospice to very clearly communicate with the faith community in a way that shows we are not going to simply look at their medical problem. We really try to make sure that everyone’s religious or spiritual beliefs are respected. I think a role like this shows your community they can entrust you with their serious illness care, including the spiritual side. A lot of folks will respond to that view of the full human being approach and taking into account spiritual and religious needs.
In a world where we’re pushed to operate faster and more efficiently every day, treating the whole human being, whether a medical or faith crisis and everything in between, that support really speaks to folks. It’s ultimately having this larger conversation about the end of life and how faith and medical care comes into those moments.
Ideally, any time someone in these different faith groups falls terminally or seriously ill, they’ll know they have someone in their community to turn to. That’s the most important part of our hospice faith outreach team. I think this is an integral role for many hospices who want to show they provide holistic, valuable quality care to their communities.
Another point for this role’s existence is just to deepen the symbiotic relationship between a hospice and palliative care provider and the faith community. This can even involve volunteer building among faith communities, with some coming into the hospice and palliative care volunteer side. So there’s overlap with volunteer coordination and growing a volunteer base to help address more than medical needs.
What are some of the key issues on your radar to address related to faith outreach? Can you share more on the challenges and opportunities?
The primary issue that I’m seeking to address in faith outreach is education. The key issue that I would like to see this role address is to provide education to congregations and our service area, and to provide so much education that in the future, our local ministers and churches can themselves become sites of education about hospice and palliative care and the benefits of both.
Unfortunately, too many people in America do not know exactly how beneficial hospice and palliative care can be, and when you can utilize that care. The main issue that I’m trying to address is to help provide education for members of congregations about hospice care and palliative care and when to access it. Ultimately, it’s a goal to end up partnering with those congregations themselves to provide education to their members.
Oftentimes, a very common thing that can occur is someone may have a loved one who would potentially benefit from receiving our hospice or palliative care. Because they have not been adequately informed about hospice and palliative care, they go to their spiritual advisor or religious guide. But that leader may not have insight into the nature of hospice. That’s a lot of our obstacles in hospice, just that education.
The main issue that I would like my role to educate so that when someone does go to that guide feeling spiritually conflicted about hospice or palliative care, that person has the confidence and the education to be able to very clearly express that hospice and palliative care is not giving up on your loved one. In fact, it is just another way for you to continue to care and love them, and get them the support that they need at this time.
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