Doctors and clergy approach healing in different ways. Doctors heal bodies, which means taking vital signs, making diagnoses based on empirical evidence, and prescribing treatments with the expectation of immediate results. Clergy minister to souls, which means providing pastoral care, teaching the foundations of faith, and believing in things that are, by definition, unprovable and immeasurable. And yet, when the mental health crisis in the United States reached a certain crisis point, we doctors realized it was time to break down the barriers that traditionally separated hospitals from places of worship and educate members of the clergy to provide what might be called emotional, psychological and spiritual care. FIRST AID.

To understand why more health systems are partnering with religious organizations, consider that 169 million Americans, according to the Bureau of Health Workforce, live in areas where there is a serious shortage of health care professionals mental. This represents more than half of the population and this figure, unfortunately, continues to grow. The cost factor adds to the challenge: Many mental health professionals accept no insurance and charge considerable sums up front for their services.

These are some of the reasons why we at Northwell Health decided to do something we have never done before. We contacted clergy, asked for their help, and offered our help in return.

First, we formed a Clergy Advisory Council, comprised of 12 influential interfaith leaders, to provide us with guidance and advice. As New York’s largest health system, we serve people from a dazzling array of faith traditions, ethnicities, and backgrounds, and we wanted to make sure we’re listening to the challenges and needs of each community. “Mental health” is not an abstraction and cannot be treated with predefined solutions: context matters. Providing effective mental health care requires truly knowing what ails specific individuals and communities, and our advisory board members help guide us in the right direction.

But to deal with a crisis of this magnitude, we knew we needed more than just guidance and advice. Two years ago, we launched Faith Leaders Groups, an initiative designed to provide clergy with a three-year certification in Mental Health First Aid, or MHFA, a national program designed to provide skills to identify and respond to signs of mental illness and substance abuse.

The first step in this training was to provide the clergy themselves with the tools – and permission – they needed to care for themselves. During the COVID-19 pandemic, for example, we have seen so many dedicated priests and pastors, rabbis, imams, and religious leaders of all traditions spending long hours watching over those in distress, comforting those who felt alone and to comfort those who were afraid. This work took its toll, and yet few of these overworked healers knew how to take a break and recharge their emotional and physical batteries.

After providing these caregivers with tools to care for themselves, we trained them in the basic but essential steps to providing effective and immediate care: how to assess risk of suicide or harm, how to listen without judgment , how to reassure and inform, how to encourage appropriate professional help, and how to advocate for self-help and other effective support strategies.

We are optimistic about the future of this program – and not just because it has already enabled hundreds of clergy to form their own interfaith community of support. We now have ample evidence that this type of peer counseling is extremely effective. A 2021 meta-analysis of 44 trials found that interventions delivered by non-specialists, including teachers and clergy, were more effective overall at treating and even preventing symptoms of anxiety and depression.

This helps explain why doctors and other health professionals increasingly view spirituality as one of the most important social determinants of health, a factor that plays a considerable role in determining people’s well-being. a person. After all, faith-based organizations are not only effective at providing services and education that help communities better address public health challenges; they also foster a sense of purpose and community that improves overall mental health.

Hopefully, more medical professionals and faith leaders will join this challenge and invest time and resources to ensure we can help our struggling friends and loved ones heal.

(Dr. Debbie Salas-Lopez is senior vice president of community wellness and population health at Northwell Health. The views expressed in this commentary do not necessarily reflect those of Religion News Service.)