PT 480
CULTURAL ISSUES IN THANATOLOGY
course information
This comprehensive college-level CEU course provides a very comprehensive overview of studies, research, and dynamics related to cultural issues in death, dying and bereavement. I'm pleased to offer you this course. This is an exciting course. For most the mystery of death and dying continues to defy imagination. What is seen of death is the finality of the physical body. But what is believed about the meaning of death, how it should be faced, and what happens after physical death varies by culture and its associated religion (DeSpelder & Strickland, 1992; Johnson &McGee, 1991).
The aim of education about Cultural Issues in Thanatology is to explain why this death has occurred at this time and this way. We look at our culture for advice on how to act when a death occurs, how to express grief, and how to remember the person who has died. We find comfort in the rituals that the culture prescribes, and culture presents a structure within which death takes on meaning (DeSpelder & Strickland, 1003; Johnson & McGee, 1991). Integrating multicultural and lifespan considerations is crucial to counseling effectiveness. Upon completion of this course, students are awarded 40 contact hours of continuing education credits. Course Code: PT480
This course is particularly designed for those who would like to apply for Certification as a Pastoral Care Thanatologist with the American Academy of Grief Counseling.
Instructor/Course Author: Juan Kenigstein, Ph.D, M.Ed., FT, FAAGC, GC-C
Link to Resume
Email: kenigstein@aol.com
TIME FRAME: You are allotted two years from the date of enrollment, to complete this course, as well as all of the courses in the pastoral thanatology program. There are no set time-frames, other than the two year allotted time. If you do not complete the course within the two-year time-frame, you will be removed from the course and an "incomplete" will be recorded for you in our records. Also, if you would like to complete the course after this two-year expiration time, you would need to register and pay the course tuition fee again.
TEXTBOOKS:
There are two (2) required textbook for this course.
1. Multicultural Counseling and Psychotherapy: A Lifespan Perspective, 4/e
Leroy G. Manning & M. Lee Manning, Prentice Hall. 2007 ISBN-10: 0131706810 | ISBN-13: 9780131706811
2. The Last Dance: Encountering Death and Dying - 7th edition. Lynne Ann DeSpelder, McGraw-Hill. 2005 ISBN: 0072920963
AIHCP Online Bookstore: AIHCP provides an online bookstore stocked with all of the required textbooks, and/or materials required for its CE courses. To purchase this book online, click the access store link, go to the table of categories, right upper hand corner, and click on "Pastoral Thanatology." Access AIHCP Store: click here
GRADING: You must achieve a passing score of at least 70% to complete this course and receive the 40 hours of awarded continuing education credit. There are no letter grades assigned. You will receive notice of your total % score. Those who score below the minimum of 70% will be contacted by the American Academy of Grief Counseling and options for completing additional course work to achieve a passing score, will be presented.
BOARD APPROVALS: The American Institute of Health Care Professionals, Inc. is a licensed Continuing Education Provider in the State of California, Board of Registered Nursing, Provider # CEP 15595. Access information
Additional CE Option: this course is co-sponsored by CCMS, Inc., which is an approved provider with NBCC (National Board of Certified Counselors). CCMS, Inc., is also a continuing education provider with NAADAC,, CASAC (California), OASAS, the states of Wyoming, Montana, Arkansas, Idaho and many others. CCMS, Inc. offers our students the option of applying for and receiving a CE certificate for this course. Their CE certificate means that your course will show evidence of NBCC approval, as well as the other approvals which CCMS, Inc. provides. The fees for CE certificates with course approvals from CCMS, Inc. are very reasonable. Full information is provided in our online classrooms for enrolled students.
Online Classroom Resouces and Tools
* Message Boards: each specialty program has an area to "post" on the message board. Students may post messages at anytime. Posting allows students to converse with those in the same specialty practice and to discuss issues/course content etc. Instructions for posting are provided in the online classrooms.
* Chat Rooms: each specialty has it's own unique "chat room." Inside of the classroom there is a schedule for "chat time" with students in your specific specialty practice. Participating in "chats" is voluntary. The chat sessions are used as means for students to come together and discuss course content or anything related to the courses and/or certification specialty.
* Examination Access: there is link to take you right to the online examination program where you can print out your examination and work with it. All examinations are formatted as "open book" tests. When you are ready, you can access the exam program at anytime and click in your responses to the questions. Full information is provided in the online classrooms.
* Student Resource Center: there is a link for access to a web page "Student Resource Center." The Resource Center provides for easy access to all of our policies/procedures and additional information regarding applying for certification. We also have many links to many outside reference sites, such as online libraries that you may freely access.
* Online Evaluation: there is a link in the classroom where you may access the course evaluation. All students completing a course, must, without exception, complete the course evaluation.
* Faculty Access Information: you will have access to your instructor's online resume/biography, as well as your instructor's specific contact information.
* Additional Learning Materials: some faculty have prepared additional "readings" and /or brief lecture notes to enhance your experience. All of these are available in the online classrooms.
COURSE OBJECTIVES
Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:
- To evaluate the diversity of death-rituals and beliefs found in various cultures.
- To identify the correspondences among various cultures relative to death-related rituals and beliefs.
- To describe the historical changes in death-related beliefs and practices in the Western World.
- To discuss the impact of various beliefs and practices and to assess their value for survivors.
- To identify death related experiences from a Christian, Jewish, Muslim, and Buddhist issues and perspectives on End-of-Life.
- To assess typical and/or distinctive features of death related encounters, attitudes, and practices in four selected cultural groups (African Americans, Hispanic Americans, Asian and Pacific Islanders, and Indian and Alaska Native Americans).
- To improve communication across cultures.
- To understand End-of-Life issues for special populations.
- To interpret heterogeneity, diversity. And richness, as well as similarities and communality, within American experiences with End-of-Life.
COURSE CONTENT
A brief abstract of content:
- Introduction to Multicultural Counseling and Psychotherapy
- The counselor’s Cultural Identity
- The Culturally Effective Counselor
- Multicultural Human Growth and Development
- Understanding African American Clients
- Counseling African American Clients
- Understanding Asian American Clients
- Counseling Asian American Clients
- Understanding European American Clients
- Counseling European American Clients
- Understanding Hispanic American Clients
- Counseling Hispanic American Clients
- Understanding Native American Clients
- Counseling Native American Clients
- Issues in Multicultural Counseling