Developed by Bereavement and Advance Care Planning Services, a department of Gundersen Lutheran Medical Foundation, and a leader in hospital- and ambulatory-based bereavement and end-of-life care since 1981.
Day 1 - Adult, Pediatric, and Perinatal Death
Day 2 - A Systems Approach
PLEASE NOTE: Day 1 and Day 2 are offered separately - you can attend either or both.
Building Foundations for Bereavement Care is a 2-day blended learning program designed to provide knowledge, skills, and innovations for excellence in bereavement care throughout a health care system.
Overview
You know that good bereavement care matters -- that it's the right thing to do. But sometimes you wish you had a more in-depth understanding of how to communicate with families. Or maybe you are interested in how the quality care you provide can be available to every patient and family, no matter where in your system they receive care.
Good bereavement care, provided by educated staff, is an example of family-centered care throughout the continuum of life. It is part of a healthcare organization's commitment to the communities it serves.
Building Foundations Can Help
Gundersen Lutheran has had a system-wide interdisciplinary adult and pediatric bereavement program since 1991, and a perinatal bereavement program, Resolve Through Sharing (RTS), since 1981.
Internationally recognized for excellence in bereavement care, advance care planning, and organ donation, Gundersen Lutheran believes that staff education is an essential component of all three. Now we bring together expert faculty, evidence-based information, and innovative teaching/learning strategies to provide you the best in bereavement education. Building Foundations faculty will weave together key concepts from end-of-life care across disciplines and settings for a rewarding learning experience.
Purpose and Description: The purpose of Building Foundations is to assist healthcare professionals and community professionals in understanding the key elements in building a successful bereavement care program.
Day 1*
Building Foundations for Bereavement Care ... Adult, Pediatric, and Perinatal Death designed to help health care providers and community professionals deliver sensitive and compassionate bereavement care to patients and families across the lifespan.
Participants must complete three online modules prior to attending the workshop to learn basic bereavement concepts and prepare for a robust classroom experience. Theoretical Framework of Grief, Communicating with the Bereaved, and Caring for the Family Experiencing Perinatal Loss are easy to access, available round the clock, and included in the price of the workshop. Nurses, social workers, and chaplains receive contact hours. You will receive instructions regarding accessing the modules after you register. The on-site workshop builds on the information from the online modules. Topics include multidisciplinary teamwork, anticipatory grief, support strategies for impending death, children and grief, creating memories, ritual, and caregiver grief. The workshop is interactive and includes small- and large-group discussion, videos, and opportunities for networking. Participants will be able to
- Apply an integrative model of bereavement care
- Tailor care to unique needs of bereaved family members
- Respond sensitively to persons’ awareness of their own dying
- Create innovative ways of caring for self and others
Who should attend? Target audience includes nurses, social workers, clergy, funeral directors and other community professionals, hospice staff, palliative care providers, physicians, genetic counselors, organ and tissue recovery organization staff, designated requestors, ultrasonographers, laboratory personnel, and other professionals who interact with bereaved families in hospitals, clinics, long-term care facilities, hospices, churches, and funeral homes. This course is designed for intermediate level social work practice.
*Day 1 pre-requisite: completion of online modules
(Instructions for completion of online modules will be emailed to you after you register.)
Day 2**
Building Foundations for Bereavement Care … A Systems Approach (Day 2) provides health care providers and community professionals tools and skills to establish seamless bereavement care across the lifespan as a standard practice in a healthcare system and its community partners. Designed to educate process experts, Day 2 includes information on needs assessment, education, systems design, and quality improvement. Participants will be able to
- Identify three elements of the diffusion decision process that underlies change.
- Describe two ways of establishing unit-based expertise in bereavement care.
- List two methods for tailoring education to all hospital or agency staff.
- Define a standard of care for bereavement based on the Gundersen Lutheran Bereavement Services model and The Joint Commission standards
Who should attend? Key staff from hospitals, clinics, hospice, home care, nursing homes, organ and tissue recovery organizations, and community agencies who are interested in a systems change.
**Day 2 pre-requisite: None (you do not need to complete the online modules or attend Day 1 to attend Day 2)
