Lexington VA Health Care System

Clinical Pastoral Education

• What is Clinical Pastoral Education?
• The Individual Learning Contract
• CPE in the Context of the Lexington VAMC
• Emphasis and Core Values of the CPE Program
• CPE students minister to all faith traditions
• Instructional Philosophy
• Instructional Programs
• How to Apply
• Statement of Accreditation

What is Clinical Pastoral Education?
Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) is interfaith professional education for ministry. It brings theological students and ministers into supervised encounters with persons in crisis. Out of an intense involvement with persons in need and the feedback from peers and teachers, students develop a new awareness of themselves as persons and of the needs for whom they minister. From theological reflection on specific human situations, students gain a new understanding of ministry. Within the interdisciplinary team process of helping persons, students develop skills in interpersonal and inter-professional relationships. CPE is designed for people at various stages of life, for example, clergy seeking continuing education, laity wanting to explore and develop themselves as spiritual caregivers and seminarians preparing for ministry. The CPE programs include the following essential elements.

• A small group of peers interacting in a common learning experience
• A process conception of learning
• Specific clinical practice of ministry to persons
• Detailed reporting and evaluation of that clinical practice
• Expectations to allow for the reflection and practice of ministry to occur
• Written and oral verbatim reports of ministry experience
• Selected readings and reporting
• Personal learning contract for professional growth and development
• Individual supervision by a certified educator
• Final evaluations for each unit

The Individual Learning Contract
The CPE participant's contract is developed around the following learning goal categories.

• PASTORAL REFLECTION - reflection on one's self as a person and pastor in relationship to persons in crisis, the supervisor, and peer group members, as well as the curriculum and institutional setting.
• PASTORAL FORMATION - focus on personal and pastoral identity issues in learning and ministry.
• PASTORAL COMPETENCE - deepening of competence in pastoral function, pastoral skills, and knowledge of theology and the behavioral sciences.

CPE in the Context of the Lexington VAMC
The Lexington Veterans Affairs Medical Center was established in 1931 and is accredited by The Joint Commission. The facility is comprised of two divisions, Leestown and Cooper, with community based outpatient clinics located in Berea, Hazard, Morehead and Somerset. The Veterans Health Administration recognizes that spiritual and pastoral care must be integrated into a total program of health care provided to Veterans and made available to those who desire such care. Chaplains are integral members in key patient treatment teams to provide a holistic treatment of the health and welfare of Veterans entrusted to our care.
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Emphasis and Core Values of the CPE Program
The Clinical Pastoral Education program at the Lexington VAMC educates persons to be effective pastoral caregivers to the veterans, families, friends and staff within the Lexington VAMC to improve their health and well-being. We integrate a wide array of clinical experiences with vigorous reflection. Students have opportunities to participate in diverse clinical experiences, including the following: individual care, group work, crisis ministry, interdisciplinary teams, etc. Students reflect on their personal stories, religious heritages, theological understandings and knowledge of the behavioral sciences as these influence the ministry they provide. Students explore ways to be different and to function differently as ministers to improve their pastoral care. We teach persons knowledge and skills so they can provide effective spiritual and emotional support in a variety of settings. We embrace an important set of core values.

• Integrity: Act with the highest moral conduct at all times.
• Veteran-centered: Honor veterans by providing exceptional service to them, their families, friends and the staff who care for them.
• Learning: Give and receive open and honest feedback in respectful ways that promote increased self-awareness and skill-building.
• Transformation: Embrace personal change as a person and minister.
• Collegiality: Demonstrate clarity of communication, accountability and clear and professional boundaries.
• Diversity: Respect and celebrate diversity as a foundation for learning culturally-competent ministry.
• Self-care: Practice self-care that enables the ability to continue to care for others.

CPE students minister to all faith traditions in the following settings:

• Pastoral care
• Individual Veterans
• Veterans’ family members
• Medical center staff
• Professional help in crisis situations:
• Serious illness
• Polytrauma
• Impending death
• Sacramental Ministry
• Worship
• Public
• Private

Instructional Philosophy
We are committed to the development of compassionate and competent spiritual caregivers through an action/reflection/action model that uses the student’s personal identity, family history, social location and spiritual orientations. Learning to hear deeply the spiritual and religious dimensions of life in moments of loss and grief helps adult learners articulate their own pastoral theology. This reflective process increases self-awareness and develops pastoral skills. By employing a multicultural and multi-faith perspective in an experiential learning environment, each student can develop a unique style of ministry based on the new insights fostered. The goal of our program is to value the experience students bring with them and to mentor each student’s distinctive path towards growing their pastoral heart while learning the art of spiritual care. The curriculum uses transformative learning as an educational framework and emphasizes visitation skills, reflective listening, spiritual assessment, grief and loss counseling and non-directive ministry. Educational methodologies include the following: case studies (in a verbatim format), one-on-one education with the certified educator, mentoring by staff chaplains and interactive learning within the peer group. It also includes leading religious services and delivering sermons.
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Instructional Programs

How to Apply
Complete an ACPE CPE application form. From ACPE.edu, go to Resources > Forms & Applications. All materials need to be written at a graduate school level of quality.

Regarding the application essays:

• Reasonably full account of your life (how did persons and events in your life influence who you are today?): 5-7 pages (single spaced)
• Spiritual growth and development: 3-5 pages (single spaced)
• Description of your work: listing is sufficient
• An account of a helping incident or verbatim (what does it show about your current view of ministry?): 2-3 pages (single spaced)
• Impressions of CPE (what do you want to learn?): 1 page (single spaced)

Send completed application in one of two ways:

• By email attachment to Donald.Chase@va.gov
• By mail:
  • Don Chase, ACPE Certified Educator
    Lexington VAMC, Chaplain Service Office
    Mailstop LD-125
    2250 Leestown Road
    Lexington, KY 40511
• Upon receipt of the application, the applicant may be invited for an interview appointment.

Statement of Accreditation
The Lexington VAMC is accredited to offer CPE (Levels I/II) training by the Association for Clinical Pastoral Education, Inc. One West Court Square, Suite 325, Decatur, GA 30030 (404) 320-1472. www.acpe.edu. ACPE CPE is Trademarked by the ACPE.