October 2009 Newsletter
Back to Main Newsletters Page"This class made me very excited about starting medical school and made me realize that you can make a difference in someone's life by doing very simple, ordinary things in a loving, compassionate way."
-- Pre-med student attending a Healing the Culture "Being With" seminar
As you probably know, Congress is debating health care legislation which would create a nationalized insurance system. Among the many problems with the Obama Administration's current plan is the fact that it would use your tax dollars to pay for elective abortions, and would make it even more difficult for elderly citizens, disabled persons, and those facing terminal illnesses to get the care they need.
The fact that anyone would even consider supporting such a plan is, of course, reflective of the fact that millions of our fellow Americans have absorbed the cultural message that suffering is to be regarded with disdain, and that success and quality of life are directly related to one's degree of independence, control, and self-sufficiency.
There are many good people who are working hard to defeat this legislation. But they know all too well that their efforts will only be successful, in the long term, if we do the work of changing the culture and transforming the way people think about life in its most fragile stages. Without engaging in the long, hard, and usually unglamorous work of influencing deeply-rooted cultural attitudes, it is only a matter of time before destructive legislation surfaces again, and the battles must be fought anew.
You and I understand this reality, and it's why the work of Healing the Culture is so essential.
One of the many ways that Healing the Culture makes a difference is through the education and ethical preparation of future physicians. Every year we train pre-med students with full-day seminars called "Being With." Our seminars teach the four levels of happiness, and use the levels to deepen students' understanding of "success," "quality of life," "love," and "freedom" - all important terms when facing major health care decisions. Students inevitably discover that, if we deepen our understanding of these terms, their actualization can be enhanced rather than diminished in the later stages of life.
The class explores healthy versus unhealthy philosophies of human suffering, and the redemptive and transformative function that suffering can serve. The purpose of the class is to foster an appreciation of the intrinsic dignity of the human person and build a strong ethical framework for medical decision-making, thereby steering these young people away from the temptation to succumb to euthanasia and health-care rationing in their future medical practices.
Students participate in role-playing visitations with "elderly bed-ridden patients" in class, and are required to spend time visiting terminally and seriously ill patients at nursing homes.
Last month we held a seminar for 25 pre-med students at the University of Notre Dame, and the results were remarkable. In a post-survey, 100% reported that it "changed their thinking." 95% "now have a better understanding of human suffering than [they] did before." 100% stated that "this course will help me to be a better doctor." And 95% agreed that "quality of life can be high even in the last stages of a terminal illness." Below are some of the written comments we received:
- This class has definitely given me valuable insight to the human condition.
- It allowed me to better understand suffering. I also really liked the four levels of happiness.
- I like how she explains suffering -- it's helpful.
- Incredible. Especially the [role-playing].
- I feel like I can connect to people in older stages of life.
- Gave me a new perspective and affirmed my desire to work in the medical field.
- This 8-hour class absolutely flew by.
- I really liked the composition - philosophical, ethical, practical.
- I thought the class was really inspirational - especially talking about love, success, and freedom.
- I appreciated the sense of worth placed on just spending time with someone else.
Friends, the significance of reaching these students cannot be understated. They represent the best and brightest in our universities. But studies show that many of them will lose their faith and become radically disillusioned if they enter medical school unprepared for the suffering they will encounter. It is this unpreparedness which leads to the type of cynicism that embraces Obama-style "health care."
On the other hand, when we choose to be part of the solution rather than simply bemoaning the problem, we can offer students the answers they need and the hope they will rely on, before they even enter medical school. Their comments above give strong testimony to the effect we are having.
We have already trained over 300 students who have gone on to medical school, and many are now entering the profession. But we can only continue this work with your financial support. Providing this type of education is expensive, and if we hope to expand our outreach, we will need to create additional multimedia resources. We come to you to supply the funding we need to actualize these plans.
Will you join with me in being part of the solution? Your tax-deductible donation of $25, $50, $100, $500 or more will help us form the minds and hearts of future medical professionals. Please donate today!
Thank you for being our partners in this pro-life mission.
Camille Pauley
President
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