From Cowboys to Pit Crews: Spiritual Care in the Pandemic
Presented by Denise Hess MDiv, BCC-PCHAC, Sedona T. Montelongo BCC-PCHAC, Gary A. Weisbrich BCC-PCHAC
November 11, 2021 ~ 12pm – 1:30pm Central Time
Overview and Objectives
The pandemic has brought to the fore the essentiality of interdisciplinary health care teams. While the hospice and palliative care movements have done much to advance the integration of spiritual care in interdisciplinary team care, the pandemic has opened new frontiers for team collaboration and team resilience with great opportunities for expanded chaplain leadership roles. This webinar, presented by three palliative care chaplain leaders, will explore the challenges and leadership possibilities for chaplains on interdisciplinary health care teams.
As a result of this webinar, participants will be able to:
- Describe how the hospice and palliative care movement has influenced the evolution of health care.
- Explore the current challenges to interprofessional health care teams navigating the pandemic.
- Share best practices for chaplain-led health care team well-being practices.
NACC Certification Competencies Addressed in this Webinar
Board Certified Chaplain: PIC3, PIC5, PIC5, PPS2, PPS4, PPS9
Palliative Care Hospice Advanced Chaplain: 602.1, 602.3, 602.5, 602.5, 602.6, 602.11, 602.12
Presenter Information
Denise Hess comes to serious illness care through over a decade of work as a palliative care chaplain in Catholic health care. She has a master’s degree and license in marriage and family therapy, a master’s degree in divinity, and is an ordained minister with the Presbyterian Church (USA). She served as the Executive Director of the Supportive Care Coalition, a national partnership of Catholic health ministries advancing excellence in palliative care and now serves as the Director of Supportive Care for the Catholic Health Association. She resides in Portland, Oregon where she and her husband can be found exploring new hiking trails or playing the latest new board games with their two adult children.
Sedona Montelongo
is a Board Certified Chaplain with an Advance Practice Certification in Palliative Care and Hospice. She was the dedicated chaplain on the palliative care team at St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center for the last 8 years. In April 2021, Sedona decided to step away from the bedside to pursue work in the community. Sedona is a faculty member for Creighton University Medical School as the spiritual care educator for the palliative care physician fellows as well as for the Fellows pursing palliative care board certification in Arizona. Sedona is also an affiliate instructor for the California State University Institute for Palliative Care and serves on the Certification Commission for the National Association of Catholic Chaplains (NACC).
Gary Weisbrich 
has served as the Manager of Spiritual Care Services at Providence-St. Patrick Hospital in Missoula, Montana for the past 8 years. Prior to that, he served for 11 years as staff chaplain, Manager and Director of Chaplaincy Services at Avera-McKennan Hospital in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Gary has provided spiritual care ministry for 19 years. His passion is two-fold; elevating the role of the chaplain on the care team and assuring that staff have the education and resources to become more resilient in times of crisis. He received his undergraduate degree from South Dakota State University in Wildlife and Fisheries Management and his M. Div. from the University of St. Thomas in Rome, Italy. Gary has been a Board-Certified Chaplain since 2009 and received his palliative Care and Hospice Advanced Certification in June of 2015. His wife, Angela, is an ICU nurse by trade and now stay at home mom. They have 5 children.
