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The Role of the Chaplains in OSC. ADM Mike Mullen Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff Total Force Health for the 21 st Century 9 Dec 2009 remarks at USUHS.
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ADM Mike MullenChairman, Joint Chiefs of StaffTotal Force Health for the 21st Century9 Dec 2009 remarks at USUHS ….”I’ve actually been dealing with chaplains for a long time. And I’m talking my own service here more than anything else. I don’t think there’s-as a group, in total, nobody knows more about my force than the chaplains-the problems, the breadth, the depth, the you-name-it.” ….”the group that I think know more than anybody else about what’s really going on.”
Chaplain Role & Function in Operational Setting • Principal moral, ethical, and spiritual advisor to the Commanding Officer—measure of standing and trust • Organic resource to facilitate, provide, care and advise for Sailors—by-stander in combat • Key player to help warriors unpack the moral, ethical, spiritual and emotional impact of traumatic experiences—a sounding board • Lead agent to reframe “life and death” experiences; the recognition of a spiritual dimension—gives purpose and meaning to traumatic events; inspires hope and promotes spiritual readiness
Collaboration between Navy Medicine Wounded, Ill and Injured (WII) and Pastoral Care to provide chaplains with best practices for spiritual care of PTSD/TBI population. • Handbook written to collect resources being used by pastoral care providers. • Navy Medicine chaplains trained in August and September 2010 on the handbook. • Navy Medicine and Chaplain Corps provided joint professional development training in FY08 and FY09 on COSC for Caregivers and COSC-The Family Dynamic. Handbook provides specific resources for pastoral caregivers.