Our Shared Values - Your Spiritual Wellbeing

Your Spiritual Wellbeing Our Shared Values

We show LOVE We act with RESPECT We are RELIABLE We EMPOWER others

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Our Shared Values At BaptistCare, we create strong and caring communities that value personal well-being and each other. When these values are shared, it has the potential to transform lives.

Among the thousands of individuals we meet each day, we see that people want to be shown genuine loving care, to be respected as an individual, to be empowered to live well, and to always feel confident they have someone they can rely on.

We value the unique needs of our customers and are committed to using our shared values as our guiding approach in the planning, delivery and evaluation of care.

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Understanding the Context Spirituality is something common to all humanity. Deep within all of us is a need to find meaning and purpose and to explore the deeper questions of life. Johnston & Mayers (2008)1 considered that spirituality is experienced through connectedness to God/ a higher being; and/or by one’s relationship with self, others, or nature.

There are 70% of Australians who believe in God or some form of higher power2. So exploring spirituality is likely to be relevant to many Australians.

Even for those who claim not to have a belief in any higher power, questions of meaning and purpose are still relevant. MacKinlay (2001)3 defined spirituality as that which lies at the core of each person’s being, an essential dimension which brings meaning to life.

At BaptistCare we are dedicated to fostering independence and quality of life. We focus on the whole person and seek to meet not just physical care needs but emotional and spiritual needs. This spiritual care will be provided with Christ-like love, respect and dignity, in order to assist each individual’s life journey through transitions encompassing grief and joy, loss and gain, the search for meaning, and the maintaining of fruitful relationships with self, others and the transcendent ‘other’.

1 Mayers and Johnston, 2008, p. 273 2 Source: ABS Census of Population and Housing, 2016 3 MacKinlay EB. The Spiritual dimension of caring: applying a model for spiritual tasks of ageing. Journal of Religious Gerontology 2001; 12 (3/4): 151-166 3

Our Commitment to our Customers BaptistCare is committed to providing care and services to all people based on our shared values, acknowledging the unique background and individuality of each person and their spiritual wellbeing. We seek to provide an inclusive, welcoming, professional and safe environment for all people.

Spiritual wellbeing is an indication of a person’s experience of personal integration, meaning, purpose and peace; and of the person’s life-giving relationship with others, their own culture, the arts, the environment, and God, the significant or the sacred.

Spiritual wellbeing is a part of wholeness, which encompasses the physical, emotional, mental and spiritual dimensions. This doesn’t mean that we need to be well in every area, however, to be spiritually well. For example, someone may be physically unwell yet have a positive spiritual wellbeing which helps them cope with their physical difficulties.

We demonstrate our shared values by the quality of care and the services we provide, the relationships we develop, and the manner in which we honour those with whom we interact; by being loving, respectful, reliable and empowering.

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We are LOVING

We genuinely care.

We show love and respect to those we serve.

BaptistCare will: • Express love relationally through listening, developing understanding and, sharing sensitively and appropriately.

• Provide optional, inclusive, non-denominational opportunities for residents and staff to participate in Christian worship services, devotions, prayer and pastoral care support.

• Be proactive and responsive to the unique, cultural, spiritual and personal needs of all our customers.

• Provide an environment which promotes a sense of emotional safety and where differences are accepted and valued.

• Build rapport with individuals in order to understand their background, preferences and needs more fully.

• Express God’s care for each person through the way in which we care for them.

• Promote positive virtues such as love, hope, forgiveness, reconciliation and peace.

• Work cooperatively, being mindful of others.

“Love is patient, love is kind... It is not rude... it is not easily angered...

Love rejoices with the truth...It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.”

- 1 Corinthians 13: 4-8

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Joan’s Story Joan’s Care Facilitator didn’t understand why Joan didn’t want to attend the services at her local church, despite expressing a strong faith in God. After the BaptistCare at home Chaplain spent some time with Joan and listened to her story, she learnt that Joan did not enjoy group worship because of a traumatic experience in her youth.

Joan did, however, love individual time with the chaplain and with a volunteer pastoral care visitor, reading the Bible and praying together.

Your Spiritual Wellbeing

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We RESPECT the individual

We respect individuality.

We do it their way.

We pay attention to the small things that mean most to them.

BaptistCare will: • Ensure that spiritual care is equitable, respectful and meets the spiritual and religious needs of people of all faith traditions, as well as those with no defined faith.

• Ensure all services are provided equitably, regardless of background, origin, age, sexuality, gender identity, lifestyle, faith, language and culture.

• Exercise spiritual care as invited to, by encouragement and guidance, not by imposition.

• Recognise that each person has their own beliefs and values, which we will be sensitive to and respect, along with the dignity of each individual.

• Respect the privacy of each person and their family to ensure the confidentiality of their information.

• Build a healthy culture of mutual respect.

“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”

- Matthew 7:12

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Dravid’s Story Dravid is a Hindu. Although he is comfortable as a resident in a Christian centre, he still wants to maintain links with his faith group. The Chaplain was able to put Dravid in contact with the local temple. Once a month a group of fellow Hindus come to the BaptistCare centre to say Hindu prayers with Dravid and the BaptistCare management makes a suitable meeting room available. Dravid is appreciative of the chaplain’s willingness to support his faith journey.

Your Spiritual Wellbeing

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We are RELIABLE

We deliver what we promise.

We do what we say.

We keep customers informed.

BaptistCare will: • Create an environment that supports the wellbeing of others.

• Foster a culture of inclusion, acceptance and belonging, through acceptance and appreciation of differences.

• Promote positive virtues such as love, hope, forgiveness, reconciliation and peace.

• Communicate sensitively and respectfully with people of different beliefs or viewpoints.

• Offer opportunities for people to develop a greater understanding of God, themselves and others.

• Actively seek and consider the perspective of others, conveying empathy and compassion with active listening.

“One who is faithful in very little can be trusted to be faithful in much”

- Luke 16:10

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Margaret’s Story Since Tom had passed away Margaret had been feeling alone and isolated living in the large family home. Her friends had now all moved away and no longer being able to drive made it hard to pursue the sort of social life she had been used to. Moving into a retirement village was a daunting thought, but very quickly the other residents embraced her and she became part of a thriving, warm community. The weekly chapel services allowed her to reconnect with church after not having had any involvement for many years. Margaret has built a new set of strong friendships and even joined a small weekly Bible study group that meets in her neighbour’s home.

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We EMPOWER others

We empower customers to live well.

We do it with them, not for them.

We use our experience and expertise to proactively help customers.

BaptistCare will: • Support the right of all customers, employees and volunteers to choose their own spiritual path, including the freedom to enter, leave or maintain the faith tradition of their choice.

• Facilitate opportunities for developing spiritual wellbeing and expression.

• Encourage a personal faith that brings inner peace.

• Provide, or assist in arranging, spiritual care that is equitable, respectful and appropriate, according to the faith background and preferences of the individual.

• Empower people to live the lives they choose through supportive and enabling spiritual care and services.

• Allow appropriate self-expression, without negatively impacting on others.

“..in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of others.””

- Phillipians 2: 3-4

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Arosha’s Story Arosha wouldn’t call herself religious. She believes in God, she just doesn’t go to church. All she really wanted was a job.

However after Arosha started work at BaptistCare and was taught about the shared values at orientation she realised that she could commit herself to those values. Arosha now describes herself as part of a supportive team working together with care professionals to deliver holistic care.

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John’s Story “I’m an atheist”, John announced.

“That’s okay,” the chaplain replied, “I visit atheists too!” The chaplain continued to spend time with John over the following weeks. Eventually John asked the chaplain why he still called. The chaplain explained that he valued John and wanted to be there as a support. It wasn’t long after this that John poured out his hurt and disappointment that if it wasn’t for the chaplain’s visits he would go mad as he felt isolated and all alone in the world.

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1300 275 227 baptistcare.org.au ask@baptistcare.org.au