COURSE INFORMATION

The CE course in the Diverse Populations Grief Specialist Certification Program curriculum focused on Global Cultures and Religions covers a comprehensive overview and review of forms of grief rituals practiced by world religions, including Buddhism, Hinduism, Christianity, Islam, Judaism, and their respective denominations and subsects in areas of the world where they are most commonly represented. It then explores the ways that those who come from these religions may be able to still practice their grief rituals if they live in societies where their religious practices are not common. Students learn how to support clients from diverse religions, as well as other spiritual practices and secular approaches to grief. This Grief Support for Global Cultures and Religions course includes readings/study from the assigned textbook.

Course Code: GC 740. Contact hours of education = 35.

Instructor/Course Author: Dr. Elaine Dispo-Rendón, Ph.D., GC-C, PGSS-C

Link to Resume: access here

TEXTBOOK: There is one (1) required textbook for this course.

Death and Bereavement Across Cultures 2nd Edition. Colin M. Parkes, Pittu Laungani, & Bill Young. Routledge. 2015.  ISBN-10: 0415522366 ISBN-13: 978-0415522366 Paper back edition.

Link to Purchase on Amazon.com: Access Here

TIME FRAME: You are allotted two years from the date of enrollment, to complete all of the four (4) courses in the Grief Support Group Certified Specialist continuing education program. There are no set time-frames, other than the two year allotted time. If you do not complete the courses 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 courses after this two-year expiration time, you would need to register and pay the course tuition fee again.

GRADING: You must achieve a passing score of at least 70% to complete this course and receive the 35 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 an Approved Provider for Continuing Education by the South Carolina Professional Counselors, Marriage & Family Therapists and Psycho-Educational Specialists licensing board, Provider # 4637.

AIHCP is an approved provider of continuing education by the American Institute of Health Care Professionals (The Provider) is approved by the California Board of Registered Nurses, Provider number # CEP 15595 for 35 Contact Hours. Access information

This course, which is approved by the Florida State Board Of Nursing (CE Provider # 50-11975) also has the following Board of Nursing Approvals, for 35 contact hours of CE

The American Institute of Health Care Professionals Inc: is a Rule Approved Provider of Continuing Education by the Arkansas Board of Nursing. CE Provider # 50-11975.
The American Institute of Health Care Professionals Inc: is a Rule Approved Provider of Continuing Education by the Georgia Board of Nursing. CE Provider # 50-11975.
The American Institute of Health Care Professionals Inc: is a Rule Approved Provider of Continuing Education by the South Carolina Board of Nursing. CE Provider # 50-11975.
The American Institute of Health Care Professionals Inc: is a Rule Approved Provider of Continuing Education by the West Virginia Board of Examiners for Professional Registered Nurses. CE Provider # 50-11975.
The American Institute of Health Care Professionals Inc: is a Rule Approved Provider of Continuing Education by the New Mexico Board of Nursing. CE Provider # 50-11975.

Course Refund & AIHCP Policies: access here

ONLINE CLASSROOM RESOURCES AND TOOLS

* 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:

1. Identify difference between small scale and large scale societies
2. Explain the development of world religions and distinctive beliefs
3. Analyze distinctive differences in grieving among major religions
4. Describe grief in Christianity
5. Describe grief in Judaism
6. Describe grief in Islam
7. Describe grief in Hinduism
8. Describe grief in Buddhism
9. Analyze how grief may differ among religious subsects
10. Explain distinctive factors of bereavement in small scale societies
11. Explain funeral rituals in Christianity
12. Explain funeral rituals in Judaism
13. Explain funeral rituals in Islam
14. Explain funeral rituals in Hinduism
15. Explain funeral rituals in Buddhism
16. Describe certain religions’ appropriate corpse cleansing practices
17. Describe certain religions’ dietary practices during bereavement
18. Discuss various cultures’ acceptable grief time frames
19. Discuss differences among cultures and religions in terms of emotional expression during bereavement
20. Explain how minority cultures practice grief rituals when away from others of the same religion
21. Explain how grief supporters can help bereaved who practice different religions
22. Discuss parents’ bereavement in different cultures
23. Discuss children’s bereavement in different cultures
24. Discuss children’s exposure to real death versus violence in the media
25. Describe how cultures cope with sudden death, including suicide and pregnancy loss
26. Explain bereavement and funeral rituals of children in different cultures
27. Describe appropriate attire during bereavement for different cultures
28. Discuss support for the dying and bereaved families
29. Discuss hospice as a bereavement model
30. Discuss cross-cultural attitudes toward death
31. Discuss secularism in terms of grief
32. Discuss humanism in terms of grief
33. Discuss animism in terms of grief
34. Assess the need for bereavement support for minority cultures
35. Describe what Functional Magnetic-Resonance Imagery (fMRI) can scan for in terms of grief
36. Define and assess the needs for grievers who have Persistent Complex Bereavement Disorder (PCBD)
37. Explain examples of different religion’s bereavement process

COURSE CONTENT:

A brief abstract of content:

• World religion history
• Grief of major world religions
• Grief of religious subsects
• Christian grief
• Jewish grief
• Muslim grief
• Hindu grief
• Buddhist grief
• Small scale society bereavement
• Christian funeral rituals
• Jewish funeral rituals
• Muslim funeral rituals
• Hindu funeral rituals
• Buddhist funeral rituals
• Appropriate cleansing practices of corpses in certain religions
• Dietary practices during bereavement of certain religions
• Acceptable time frames of grief in various cultures
• Acceptable forms of emotional expression during bereavement within religions and cultures
• How minority cultures practice grief rituals when outside country of origin
• Best practices for grief supporters who help bereaved of other religions
• Bereaved parents in different cultures
• Bereaved children in different cultures
• How cultures cope with deaths that were not anticipated and prepared for, including suicide, sudden death and pregnancy loss
• Bereavement and burials of children in different cultures
• Appropriate attire for cultures during grief
• Support for terminal patients and their families
• Hospice to prepare for bereavement
• Grief in secularism
• Grief in humanism
• Grief in animism
• Cross-cultural attitudes toward death
• Need for bereavement support for minority cultures
• Functional Magnetic-Resonance Imagery (fMRI scan)
• Persistent Complex Bereavement Disorder (PCBD)