For the past 14 or so years, I've participated in a healing prayer group with some friends. We meet weekly and pray for the health of folks running the gamut from broken limbs to terminal illnesses. The one hard-and-fast rule we have is that the person for whom we're praying must know that we are praying for him (or her) and must have given us explicit permission to do so (there are exceptions, of course: someone in a coma is unlikely to meet those criteria for a while).
That rule is because we believe that the key to our efforts is that we are connected to and with the folks on the list. To that end, we also endeavor to get regular, timely updates from them on their progress (If any). We acknowledge that we don't know - can never "know" - whether or not our efforts have been successful, but we continue to meet week in and week out because we believe that we are making a difference in these people's lives.
Which may explain why my interest was immediately piqued by this item:
"I was parked in front of a patient’s home before my visit, running through my checklist. Patient’s diagnosis and prognosis. Any known family members or friends supporting the patient. Religious affiliation, if any. Patient’s name – you should always recheck the patient’s name. It’s good to know little about a patient’s medical concerns, but as chaplain, my concern is not what the patient’s illness is, but who the patient is. I want to address their spiritual needs and see how their spiritual health affects their overall health."
Turns out, the (anonymous) author works for an ACO (Accountable Care Organization - healthcare companies that are paid as a percentage of the money saved through their care management) called MissionPoint Health Partners. The folks in my healing prayer group were also intrigued,and urged me to connect with the firm to find out more.
So I reached out via their site's contact form, and even sent a LinkedIn invite to whom it appears is their media outreach person.
Days later: /crickets.
That's a shame, too, since this concept shows real promise, and there are some key questions that we'd like to see addressed.
For assistance: how do they deal with atheists who express an interest in this service?
And what metric do they employ to measure "success?" That is, they claim that this service reduces expenses, but how do they know this?
Oh, well, they missed an opportunity.
That rule is because we believe that the key to our efforts is that we are connected to and with the folks on the list. To that end, we also endeavor to get regular, timely updates from them on their progress (If any). We acknowledge that we don't know - can never "know" - whether or not our efforts have been successful, but we continue to meet week in and week out because we believe that we are making a difference in these people's lives.
Which may explain why my interest was immediately piqued by this item:
"I was parked in front of a patient’s home before my visit, running through my checklist. Patient’s diagnosis and prognosis. Any known family members or friends supporting the patient. Religious affiliation, if any. Patient’s name – you should always recheck the patient’s name. It’s good to know little about a patient’s medical concerns, but as chaplain, my concern is not what the patient’s illness is, but who the patient is. I want to address their spiritual needs and see how their spiritual health affects their overall health."
Turns out, the (anonymous) author works for an ACO (Accountable Care Organization - healthcare companies that are paid as a percentage of the money saved through their care management) called MissionPoint Health Partners. The folks in my healing prayer group were also intrigued,and urged me to connect with the firm to find out more.
So I reached out via their site's contact form, and even sent a LinkedIn invite to whom it appears is their media outreach person.
Days later: /crickets.
That's a shame, too, since this concept shows real promise, and there are some key questions that we'd like to see addressed.
For assistance: how do they deal with atheists who express an interest in this service?
And what metric do they employ to measure "success?" That is, they claim that this service reduces expenses, but how do they know this?
Oh, well, they missed an opportunity.
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