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Mental Health Chaplaincy: A Guide For Geriatric Psychiatric Chaplains, Deena Anne Martinelli

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The Veterans Administration (VA) and Department of Defense (DOD) evaluated the expanding roles of chaplains in mental health and identified the prevalent need for additional training among chaplains when integrating chaplaincy and mental health services. Literature revealed that chaplains were lacking in the skillsets and pastoral care practices needed to effectively care for elderly patients with mental health disorders. A gap remains in literature regarding the reported level of training and preparedness of chaplains who ministered to geriatric mental health patients within clinical settings, which this project sought to examine. Harter’s competence motivation theory and the Holy Bible served as …