280 Grief and Loss Across the Lifespan
relationship with the staff mirrors the therapeutic relationship the staff are
expected to have with patients and families. It requires tolerating the resis-
tance to change, staying present in the witnessing of pain (perceived or real),
and being self-aware. A few years ago, I attended a 2 day workshop with
Robert Neimeyer. During one session of the workshop I recall him saying that
we should never ask a client to do anything we, ourselves, are unwilling to
do—I believe that is also true for leadership. If we desire our staff to be self-
reflective and self-aware, then we as leaders must demonstrate and model
those qualities.InterventionsJoining with the staff in the expression of sadness following a patient’s death
and supporting the expression of sadness is essential to maintaining a com-
passionate end of life workforce (Berzoff, 2008; Seno, 2010; Walter & McCoyd,
2009). Recently, we expanded bereavement in the weekly Interdisciplinary
group (IDG) meetings. Previously, the bereavement section of the meeting
briefly opened our 2 hour meeting. By simply moving bereavement to the end
of the meeting, we were able to not only expand the time allotted to recogniz-
ing the death of our patients, but more importantly, we were able to add ele-
ments of ritual which encourage individual clinicians to actively participate.
At the beginning of the bereavement section of the meeting, everyone is asked
to close their computers as they participate in a meditative exercise led by
the bereavement coordinator and the music therapist. At the conclusion of the
bereavement meditation, a candle is lit, the names of the recently deceased
are read, and the candle is passed to each participant in the IDG meeting—
which includes the manager and the physician. Upon receiving the candle,
the clinician receives the full attention of his or her colleagues. Participants
discuss individual patients, their experiences with families, their concerns for
the bereaved, and many times touch on the meaningfulness and challenges
of their work. Clinicians are also invited to share any personal burdens they
may be carrying into their work or they may quietly pass the candle to the
next team member. Participation has built over time, but now it is not unusual
to have 100% participation—each team member speaking openly when they
receive the candle. One reason I believe this intervention has been so success-
ful was because staff participated in the development of the format. It has also
provided an amazing opportunity for managers to offer support and to also
receive support from the staff. Expression, acknowledgment, and validation of
the relational experience are essential for practitioners engaged in emotional
work (Huggard, 2008).
In any area of social work practice, clinical supervision is an important
component for social workers. The agency provides monthly group supervi-
sion sessions with a contracted social work supervisor. These agency supported
sessions are very well attended by the hospice social work and bereavement
staff.
We continue to move forward with efforts to provide clinicians opportu-
nities to express and process their end of life experiences. The staff wants, and
openly requests, support. Support at this agency was previously team-centered,