VIDEO BLASTS

August 2015

  1. Hello Members, and a special welcome to those members for whom this video is one of the only connection they have with our profession.

It seems that it was only a couple of weeks ago that I was speaking to you and here it’s another month. I guess being on vacation for 2 weeks makes a month past faster.

  1. I want to acknowledge the deaths of two or our members this past month, Neil McKenna and Colleen Lashmar. There is always a risk involved in naming some members and inadvertently missing others, so allowing for that, I personally want to express my condolences to the Sisters of St. Joseph of Hamilton and to the members of South West Ontario region on the death of Colleen.
  1. Colleen was an active and involved member of her region and CASC nationally, teaching up until the end of July. I first met Colleen when I was chair of Education Standards and she was co-chair of the Academic Assessment Committee. She was a strong advocate for students and for a greater and broader inclusion of students. We and our association will miss her commitment, involvement and contribution to clinical care and education.
  1. I am pleased to say that we have made some changes to the Book of Remembrance and have added a section at the beginning listing member’s deaths for the current year. Hopefully this will allow us to be aware of members’ deaths and offer our support and condolences, as well as allow for our own grieving at the loss of colleagues and friends.
  1. Just a reminder that you have been invited to vote on the budget for 2015-2016. Voting will remain open until September 4th, so I encourage all of you to cast your vote. I will send out an email with the results after the voting is closed.
  1. The National Office will be closed August 24th to August 28th, while Kathy and Tony are on vacation. We wish them a restful and renewing vacation.
  1. If you recall the Spiritual Care Collaborative, which was established with our American counterparts, dissolved a few years ago, but we have maintained common standards related to education and certification and a common code of ethics.
  1. The Presidents of the different associations have had a conversation and agree to the importance of maintaining these common standards, and the need to revise them from time to time. The organizations involved are the NAJC, APC, ACPE, NACC, and us.
  1. Representatives from these associations have struck 2 task groups who are working at the revision of the education and certification standards and the common code of ethics. I want to thank our CASC members who have volunteered to be part of these task groups.
  1. We now have a new Administrative Policy entitled: “Utilizing Electronic Communication”. This policy covers the use of social media and publication of all forms of electronic images. I encourage members to familiarize yourself with the policy, especially if you’re a person who takes photos and posts them on social media sites.
  1. The policy also addresses the posting of images on our own website and we have developed a statement of consent that will be part of the registration process for conferences, giving permission for photos to be posted under the “member’s only” section of our website.
  1. A special word of thanks to Jim Huth, Chairperson for the National Ethics Committee,for spearheading this policy and his expertise concerning the ethical implications involved.
  1. As I mentioned in June’s videoblast, the Board has made the decision to dedicate one of the days of our fall Board, Commissions and Committee meetings to a Strategic Planning Day. We will be working with Jamie Campbell, who many of you were introduced to at our last AGM in Hamilton. I want the thank the Chairs of Commissions and Committee, and all of the members of the Leadership Forum for their co-operation and openness to engage in this process and accommodate their own work load to make this possible.
  1. I want to respond to the members, who over the past few months, have sent me emails asking about having your publications or research published on our website, or requests to participate in research surveys or studies emailed to members. I want to assure you that your requests have not been forgotten or overlooked.
  1. The Board spent most of our time this past meeting discussing parameters for publications and requests concerning research. Your requests have led us into deeper, broader, and important conversations. We are exploring how we invite, encourage and support research amongst our members, and be conscious of ethical principles such as consent and confidentiality, along with the particular research aligning with the goals, values, and mission of the organization.
  1. These are important conversations, but not ones that can be resolved in one session. For me, they also indicate the importance of a strategic plan, that functions as guidelines for the Board, Commissions and Committee, to inform and support the decision making process when particular requests are made.
  1. All of this is to say that your requests have not gone unaddressed, but the Board feels we need to have a larger conversation, including the Leadership Forum and integrate this conversation with our strategic planning process.
  1. I would invite all of you to check the website for regular updates and information under “what’s new” to keep yourselves informed about recent and on-going developments within our organization.
  1. That’s it for this month, thank you for listening, and talk to you next month.