We post an ethical or situational concern that has arisen in a facility where one of our readers works. It has no identifiers included. It gives you only the facts of the case. Then, you can respond to that concern. This is an ongoing dialogue, with comments added as they come in. In the following issue, assuming it has been resolved, we give you the outcome from the facility where the incident took place.

We are always looking for cases. Please send any cases that you would like considered for inclusion to: info@plainviews.org We will ensure that it is stripped of any identifiers. For further guidance about how to write up a CaseConference, please refer to the CaseConference Archives, Vol. 4, No. 3 "How to Submit a Case for CaseConference." (Click HERE)

We hope that this will help to inform not only those who are dealing with the issue, but will enable all of our readers to learn from the experiences and perhaps mistakes of others.

PLEASE NOTE: Due to unanticipated continuing responses to both the case and the resolution of the case, added responses can be viewed in the archives. Click HERE.

The chaplain began by asking the adolescent to tell her about her mother. What was she like? What did they enjoy doing together? This gave the girl an opportunity to share her story but also gave the chaplain some insights as to how to respond.

The chaplain heard that the young lady and her mother were very close. Her father had left them when she was only 6 months old and was never heard from again. The two of them enjoyed attending church services each Wednesday and Sunday. They enjoyed shopping together and in fact, one of the last things they were able to do together was shop for school clothes. Her mother loved to entertain her daughter’s friends by inviting them over for special meals that sometime took hours for her mother to prepare. This young woman loved her mother’s cooking and was hoping to learn some of her culinary secrets.

After listening, the chaplain said, “You truly love your mother. I believe that you love her so much, that the thought of your mother spending eternity in hell alone is more than you can bear.” (The young lady began to cry.) The chaplain went on to suggest that the girl, out of her love for her mother, was trying to take her own life in order to be with her mother. Additionally, the chaplain suggested to the girl that her mother may have been frustrated and angry that God was not able to spare her life and that God probably understood her frustration and anger. The chaplain also suggested that by taking care of her and her friends (by fixing gourmet meals and shopping for school clothes) her mother showed how much she loved her and that when one shows that kind of love especially to one's child, God forgives even those who are most angry with God.

The girl's attitude seemed to change almost immediately. She was released into the care of her grandparents a few days later.

Case #17

A fourteen-year-old young lady was admitted through the emergency room to the Adolescent Psychiatric unit of a hospital after attempting suicide by an overdose of drugs.

Four months before admission, her mother had died of cancer. Since that time, the adolescent's behavior had greatly deteriorated. She was skipping school more than she was attending. Her grades had fallen from a B average to failing. She became promiscuous, started on street drugs and alcohol, became belligerent in speech and abusive emotionally and physically, and began running with a wild crowd. Her attitude towards life had greatly changed from the church-going adolescent she had been six months earlier. She appears to have lost all desire to live.

She has been living with her maternal grandparents since her mother’s death. They no longer feel they are capable of caring for her and want her placed in foster care.

She shares with the chaplain that she and her mother had attended church constantly, asking God to heal her mother, but her mother died anyway. A few weeks before her death, the mother called her daughter into her room and said that she was angry with God for not healing her. The mother said that she decided to reject God and “follow the devil instead.” The adolescent told this to their pastor. The pastor told her that it was "too bad" and that her mother was "now in hell."

What else would you want to know before making a spiritual assessment?

What is your spiritual assessment given the information already presented?

What would you advise the rest of the team in terms of how they should relate to her?

What would your plan of care be?

What outcomes would you expect?

Please check the archives below for comments made about previous CaseConferences.

Send your comments about CaseConference to info@PlainViews.org.