Journal of Sacred Work

Today's meditation was written by Cathy Self, Senior Vice President for the Baptist Healing Trust.

     At first glance, my thoughts were "oh-no!" The title of the article caught my eye and gripped my heart: "Re-Designing the Character of the Care-Actor."

     Unlike the wonderful cast of Disney character-actors who step "on stage" as they move from the background to the public's eye in those magical lands of fantasy and fun, we hope those who give care in our organizations will never feel compelled to act loving, caring, and compassionate. Sadly, we have all been around some who move through their days as though actors on a stage, waiting for the final curtain of the day to fall so they can remove their masks and go home. I can't imagine the energy and emotional labor it must take to sustain one's efforts day in and day out when acting, moving in reaction to the strings being pulled by the system, the task-driven supervisor, or someone's ideas of what it means to be professional. Care-actor?

     Gratefully, I continued reading and discovered the true possibility of 'care-actors': people who take action so that care is made possible, moving into the 21st century as a positive force towards changing the system as we want it to be, "not just benchwarmers for the healthcare system as is." The author of the eye-catching article is Dr. Susan Parenti, a member of the School for Designing a Society, under the umbrella of the Gesundheit! Institute. The name alone makes me smile – the founder, Dr. Patch Adams (portrayed by Robin Williams in the movie scene above), moves through life with great intentionality in bringing joy, hope, and healing to individuals as well as to our health system.

     Among many other thoughts, Dr. Parenti notes "competent know-how in the 21st century has been reduced to efficient performance around technology, to the exclusion of loving performance around patients. It takes effort," suggests Dr. Parenti, "to distinguish the caring relationship from the uncaring system that surrounds us." She uses humor by suggesting a sign in the waiting room that might read: MEDICAL SYSTEM UNDER CONSTRUCTION: WE'RE SORRY FOR ANY INCONVENIENCE THE MEDICAL SYSTEM IS CAUSING YOU. THIS IS NOT HOW WE WANT IT TO BE. WE'RE TRYING TO CHANGE IT. PLEASE HELP, signed, your nurses, lab technicians, receptionists, and doctors.

     The premise of Dr. Parenti's paper seems to be that to bring about desirable change for the health care system of our nation, we need to focus on the character of those who act to make care possible, the care-actor. Added to the long and already well-developed list of needed attentivenesses (diagnostic, commiserating, technical, bureaucratic), the Gensundheit! Institute advocates for playful attentiveness to unleash the power of direct human relationship and healing.

     As hard as it is to image in the hallways of most of our organizations, Dr. Patch Adams has for decades advocated for fun and play as gifts of healing. Clowning at the Institute is about "bringing peace to those who have lost trust in life's joy and fun. Healing the body, the mind, the spirit, the community, the world." Maybe what our Care-actors need today is to be in touch with the child within, the one who knows laughter, and joy, and play. Not out of pretending, or acting, but with intention taking action on behalf of those we serve, extending Love's delight. What do you think? Do you see yourself as a Care-actor?