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Finding meaning in dire times

By Mike Gonzalez 4 min read

ALPENA -- "My passion is helping people find meaning and purpose even in the midst of life's challenges," the Reverend Laura Hoffman, spiritual care manager of MyMichigan Medical Center Alpena, stated.

This is the first thing anyone sees when picking up Hoffman's business card -- that, and a picture of her warmly smiling.

Hoffman is the one and only spiritual care manager in the MyMichigan Health system, a role that has her on call 24/7 and has her supporting not just patients and families, but also staff in the hospital.

"I think there's a new understanding of spiritual care over the last few years, I think, especially with the COVID crisis," Hoffman said. "There's an understanding that spiritual care is not about religious doctrine or religious ritual, that it's much more than that. And I think we saw that with the burnout that came through COVID with the emotional toll it took on not just patients and family members, but on staff."

She mentioned that the hospital usually had spiritual leaders of local churches come in for spiritual care, but it wasn't until 2018 that Hoffman came in as the spiritual care manager and started to become the liaison between clergy and hospital patients and families.

Her roles change constantly to fit the needs of those who need her the most.

"The first 30 minutes after a death is sacred and a very critical time in terms of the grieving process for that family," Hoffman said. "I have found one of the most helpful things to do is help them tell the stories. And all you do is ask and listen. It's amazing what you hear and it's amazing the way the emotions change in the room.

"Because you get people crying, very sad, and then you'll have them starting to laugh," Hoffman continued. "It's what they remember, and then they'll start going back and forth between the tears and the laughter. And that's where you know we're going to be okay with the grief because we can integrate it."

According to Hoffman, her title is spiritual care manager, but it does not mean she will push any religious beliefs to other people.

She said that is not her place to do so and that her role is to provide comfort to anyone needing that service.

"My job is to come alongside you and say, 'Tell me what you believe? And how can we use that to help you get through this?'," Hoffman said. "'Where do you get comfort? Where do you get relief? What has gotten you through? You're at this point in your life, I know it's been tough. What's gotten you through to here? How do we tap into that? It may be your bowling team. Okay, how do we tap into your bowling team right now, because that's where you have meaning and purpose."

The hospital staff only had good things to say about her. Whenever employees saw Hoffman, their eyes would glisten and smiles would come across their faces.

Thomas Marsden, a worker at MyMichigan Medical Center Alpena, said that Hoffman is important to everyone at the hospital because of the way she can navigate through difficult topics.

"It feels weird to try and talk to someone in the spiritual sense with your caregiver," Marsden said. "But to have someone who represents that. She's one of those people who helps all of us."

Hoffman is currently in a pilot program with MyMichigan Health.

She's one year into the two-year project, which evaluates the effect she has on patient satisfaction scores and staff engagement scores.

If the scores show that her role improves both scores, the position of spiritual care manager may come to every other MyMichigan hospital.

"I feel like because of what I've gone through when I was younger, I have the ability to come alongside others going through loss," Hoffman said. "What I do gives meaning to my own suffering, gives purpose to my own suffering.

"My life is full and I think it's full because I get to do what I think I'm called to do," Hoffman continued. "I don't think you can do this kind of work if it's not more than a job. It has to be more than a job. To me, it's a calling."

Starting at /week.