Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) at Nationwide Children’s Hospital
Nationwide Children's Hospital is accredited by the Association for Clinical Pastoral Education (ACPE) to provide Levels IA, IB, IIA, and IIB CPE, as well as Certified Educator Candidate programs. Full-time and extended part-time programs of CPE consist of regular verbatims of care encounters, inter-personal group seminars, didactics on topics relevant to spiritual care, reflection papers and a weekly individual education seminar with your educator. Each CPE student is assigned to several hospital clinical floors where the student builds relationships and provides spiritual care to patients, families and staff. In addition, the student will be on-call at the hospital on a rotation basis, approximately once a week.
Our philosophy of spiritual care education centers around one primary objective: to aid clergy and lay people in making spiritual care a unique and integral part of themselves, and to accept this integration with enough pride to be able to participate in a creative and compassionate ministry. As this primary focus is related to an accredited program of CPE some of its objectives are to:
- Develop a greater awareness of their identity and authority as spiritual care providers
- Think theologically about the meaning and implications of one's work
- Develop self-awareness and self-understanding as these inform one's personal and professional identity and functioning
- Develop sensitivity to the feelings of those with whom one works
- Develop the ability to respond with empathy
- Develop the ability to use appropriate religious resources in ministry
- Come to an understanding of the hospital as a health care delivery system with its related issues
Meet Our Educators
Rev. Carrie Finegan is an Ordained Deacon in the United Methodist Church and serves as the Director of Spiritual Care. She is a Certified Educator in the Association for Clinical Pastoral Education and a Board Certified Chaplain in the Association for Professional Chaplains. Carrie received her Bachelor of Arts from Texas Christian University and her Master of Divinity from Candler School of Theology at Emory University.
For nine years Carrie served as a student and staff chaplain at a number of hospitals in the Atlanta, GA area. Carrie has also served in local churches and various church ministries in many capacities over the years and currently serves a secondary appointment at the United Methodist Church for All People. Carrie lives in Columbus with her spouse, children and several pets.
Rev. Dr. Mark Feldbush is a Certified Educator with ACPE and a Board Certified Chaplain with the Association of Professional Chaplains. He is commissioned by Federation of Christian Ministries and formed in the Seventh-day Adventist tradition. He has more than 25 years of pastoral experience in chaplaincy, congregational ministry and church planting settings.
He worked as a chaplain and trained to be a CPE Educator at Adventist HealthCare and Saint Elizabeths Hospital in the Washington, DC area. He also worked as the Manager of Spiritual Care and CPE Educator with Kettering Health Network in Dayton, OH. Mark joined Nationwide Children’s in the summer of 2020. Mark graduated with his Doctor of Ministry degree from Ecumenical Theological Seminary in Detroit in 2021. Mark and his wife have two adult daughters, and two lovable dogs at home. Mark is an avid music fan and lover of the arts.
Additional information about CPE at Nationwide Children's Hospital:
General information about CPE may be found on ACPE’s website, as well as answers to frequently asked questions about CPE. Click here for a copy of our Annual Notice.
Applications
To apply, download and fill out the application. Email your completed application and all required essays to SpiritualCareInfo@NationwideChildrens.org. The $25 application fee should be made payable to "Nationwide Children's Hospital" and mailed to:
Department of Spiritual Care
Nationwide Children's Hospital
700 Children’s Drive
Columbus, OH 43205
Once we receive your application fee, your application will then be reviewed, and you will be contacted within approximately two weeks on next steps.
Applications for intern units are accepted on a rolling basis throughout the year, until each unit is full. Applications for residencies are accepted beginning in the September before the beginning of the residency, until each residency position is filled. Contact us for current availability or additional information.
CPE Unit Dates for 2024-2025
Part Time Intern Units
- Fall 2024: September 4, 2024 – January 3, 2025 (17 Weeks)
- Meets on Mondays plus clinical hours and about 1 overnight shift per week
- Spring 2024: January 18, 2024 – May 17, 2024 (17 Weeks)
- Meets on Mondays plus clinical hours and about 1 overnight shift per week
Full Time Intern Units
- Summer: May 28, 2024 – August 9, 2024 (11 Weeks)
Typical schedule is 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday including about 1 overnight shift per week (rest time is provided before and after each overnight shift)
Levels of CPE Offered in Intern Units
All of our Part Time and Full Time and Intern Units are typically designed for Level IA and/or Level IB students. Students working on Level IIA or Level IIB are welcome into these Intern Units, and educational requirements will be adjusted to accommodate their level of learning.
Full Time Residencies - Accepting Applications for 2025-2026
The 2024-2025 residency is now full
Our Residency year runs from the end of May 2025 through the end of May 2026. We have three full time residency positions available that cover various areas including critical care, behavioral health, and palliative care. These positions include a stipend and benefits.
Levels of CPE Offered in Residency Units
Applicants are required to have completed one previous unit of Level IA ACPE Accredited CPE. The residency year is designed to offer 3 units of CPE where students will progress from Level IB through Level IIB. Actual student progress may vary.
Statement of Confidentiality and Student Rights
Annual Notice:
This ACPE CPE program guarantees to its students the right to inspect and review education records, to seek to amend them, and to specify control over release of record information.
A student has the right to object to record content. If not negotiable, the written objection will be kept with and released with the record.
Violations of Annual Notice protocols may be reported to the Chair of the Accreditation Commission via email: accreditation@acpe.edu or at the ACPE address below.
The CPE program at Nationwide Children’s Hospital is accredited by
ACPE: The Standard for Spiritual Care and Education
1 Concourse Pkwy, Suite 800, Atlanta, GA 30328
(404) 320-1472
A copy of the Nationwide Children's CPE Annual Notice can be downloaded here.
ACPE information may be found at their website www.acpe.edu and application forms may be found at https://acpe.edu/education/cpe-students/cpe-application or by calling the Spiritual Care office at (614) 722-5250.