Duke Perinatal has expanded its integrated model to include Chaplain Services and has welcomed Rev. Alyson Anderson Tiwari, M.Div., to its team. This augmentation of the care model at the clinic makes chaplaincy available to staff and patients of all worldviews and belief systems. The new aspect allows for a holistically coordinated system that recognizes spiritual and existential needs as integral to this particular patient population’s overall health and care, Alyson notes. She joined the care team in August.
“Having chaplain services available benefits both staff and patients. It benefits patients by participating in whole-person care, attending to the spiritual and emotional needs that can be deep and complex in the perinatal experience. It benefits staff by having a resource available for interdisciplinary collaboration, but also care for you all as you do the hard work of navigating the health and well-being of your patients,” said Alyson.
During times of illness, trauma or end-of-life care, chaplaincy contributes to this clinic’s integrated health care model by addressing spiritual distress, facilitation of meaning-making, religious needs and existential concerns that can come with the work and care of people who are pregnant in this specific journey, she notes.