Pastoral Care

Clinical Pastoral Education

The Pastoral Care Department at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center offers a dynamic and challenging learning environment for people interested in professional and personal growth through Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE).

The experience of ministering to hospitalized children, with their honesty, imagination and openness, quickly and clearly focuses the important issues involved in becoming competent in the art and skills of pastoral care.

Children and families come in every conceivable combination. Ministry events at Cincinnati Children's are filled with opportunities for learning. The Clinical Pastoral Education program at Cincinnati Children's is accredited by the Association for Clinical Pastoral Education (ACPE) to offer Level I and Level II Clinical Pastoral Education.

Residents in the Cincinnati Children's Clinical Pastoral Education Program have the opportunity to:

Develop perspective and skill in a family systems approach to pastoral ministry
Learn to assess and respond pastorally to the tough theological and ethical issues that accompany the serious illness of an infant, child or adolescent
Experience at least two of the following specialties with the direction of a mentor: Pediatric Intensive Care, Hematology / Oncology and Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
Provide pastoral care for staff, who are not only colleagues, but also the Cincinnati Children's congregation

Although Clinical Pastoral Education in the pediatric setting equips the resident with specialized skills in working with children and families, the overall program focuses more broadly on competence in Pastoral Care.

The residency program assists individuals in preparing for a variety of ministries that including institutional chaplaincy, pastoral ministry in a congregation setting, volunteer ministries and pastoral counseling.

Credit for completed units of Clinical Pastoral Education may be applied towards requirements for seminary degrees and ordination, as well as membership in the:

Clinical Pastoral Education Program

Clinical Pastoral Education provides professional education for ministry through a process of action and reflection. Clinical Pastoral Education residents are regarded as important members of the Pastoral Care Department, and they are assigned to a variety of units within the hospital. They also take part in a regular rotation of on-call and gain broad experience in ministry to patients, families and staff in acute, chronic and crisis situations.

Clinical Pastoral Education residents are regarded as integral and valued members of the health care team, and work closely with professionals from other disciplines.

The Clinical Pastoral Education program provides students with a variety of opportunities to reflect upon their experiences with peers, supervisors and other professionals:

Didactics -- Lectures and presentations offered by Pastoral Care staff and professionals from Cincinnati Children's and the community
Interpersonal Relations Group -- Learning to give and receive support clarification and confrontation in a group setting, and to become aware of underlying theological and psychological dynamics in group process
Clinical Presentation -- Various avenues for reflecting on ministry, including verbatims, practicum, spiritual assessment, case conferences
Individual Supervision -- A weekly opportunity for one-on-one reflection by the student and supervisor

Clinical Pastoral Education Training

Cincinnati Children's offers a full-time residency program, with the student receiving credit for each unit of Clinical Pastoral Education. It is designed for persons interested in an in-depth training experience that focuses on professional competence in ministry, and includes a pastoral care specialty.

Each resident receives a stipend and additional benefits, including excellent health/dental insurance, meal tickets, paid vacation days, and holidays observed by the medical center. (Please contact the supervisor for specific information regarding programs currently being offered.)