Laura Ramsey and Kelly Fuddy, staff support chaplains at Hershey Medical Center, see the everyday impact that working in health care can have on our emotional and spiritual health. “We are honored to talk with staff to find out how their days are truly going. We hear the stories of how rewarding working in health care can be, and we hear the stories of how hard it is at times,” says Ramsey.
Athletes have a team of people supporting them including coaches, teammates, medical trainers, etc. Athletes also expect that at some point they will likely get injured. Is anyone surprised when a football player breaks a bone? No. But when they do get injured, there is a whole team to help them get back into shape.
Do we have a team supporting us? Who can you turn to for emotional and spiritual support? Do we understand that working in health care is likely to lead to an emotional or spiritual injury at some point?
Everyone who enters a health care field does so with the desire to help others. What happens when we experience compassion fatigue or moral distress in the health care setting? It is so important to be proactive and focus on our emotional and spiritual health. Know who you can talk to when times get tough and have a plan for self-care to keep things from building up.
Ramsey and Fuddy have been here for a year now supporting our staff at Hershey Medical Center. Feel free to read the three articles below to learn more about what they do.
Compassion in the war zone: Two chaplains in Hershey help caregivers
A new ‘Skye’ brightens the day for Hershey Medical Center and Children’s Hospital caregivers