“Let us see what love can do,” the words William Penn used to guide his experiment in government in Pennsylvania, can also serve as a guide at work. Particularly in health care, love can be a powerful force.
In these tough economic times, in the midst of downsizing and layoffs, healthcare workers are being asked to do more with less. As if the pressures they faced were not already enough, they are now expected to cover even more bases with fewer resources.

Studies show that patients heal more quickly when their caretakers are present to them emotionally and spiritually, as well as physically. Doctors and nurses who bring their whole selves to their patients, encountering the whole person with compassion, facilitate more healing than those who bring only medical expertise.

Yet, with greater pressure to cover more bases more quickly, caretakers face greater risk of compassion fatigue. How can they keep going, day after day, staying emotionally and spiritually fit so that they can be fully present to their patients?

The Seton Cove, in Austin, Texas, addresses this need by providing compassionate care to the caregivers of the Seton hospitals in and around Austin. The 10,000 employees at various sites have access to The Seton Cove’s services, both at the center itself and at onsite programs that the center brings to the sites.

One of the onsite programs, the quarterly “Spirituality in the Workplace” luncheon series, features a different Seton hospital leader at each luncheon. The leader shares his/her story of navigating the tensions of serving in healthcare, how he or she has wrestled with taking care of patients while also staying whole. Then the leader facilitates a discussion among those present on how they address these same issues.

In another onsite luncheon series, the Tranquility Luncheons, hospital employees leave their posts for 30-minute luncheons (in two shifts, so that they can cover for one another) in which they are provided both lunch and food for the soul. The luncheons are advertised thus:

Is it possible to restore life balance over lunch? We’d like to think that such mindful changes can happen in small moments, so why not at lunch? Rejuvenating, simple practices will be shared and discussed with ample opportunity to practice.

At the luncheons, caregivers reflect on poetry and move into a brief meditation or journaling. After reading the poetry offered and reflecting on it individually, participants are invited to share with another person in the group.

Participants report that, though brief, the two types of luncheons provide welcome respite from the pressures they face. They leave with their souls renewed, having experienced compassion themselves and ready to meet their patients with compassion.

"Let us see what love can do." William Penn's words are exemplified at The Seton Cove. The Seton Cove has experimented with what compassion can do, and has found it to be one of the most powerful forces around. This Valentine's Day, take as your theme, "Let us see what love can do."

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Margaret Benefiel, Ph.D., author of "Soul at Work” and "The Soul of a Leader", works with leaders in healthcare, business, churches, government and non-profits to help them stay true to their souls. Visit her website at www.ExecutiveSoul.com. © Copyright 2010 by Margaret Benefiel.