For your professional ethics edification in May

Once a month the ACPE Professional Ethics Commission (PEC) posts a couple of statements from our Code of Professional Ethics for ACPE Members.  Each posting is accompanied by a brief personal reflection from a member of the PEC discussing some ways this person lives these commitments*.  May's statements are:

In relationship to those served, ACPE members:

• maintain professional relationships with other persons in the ACPE center, institution in which employed and/or the community.
• do not directly or by implication claim professional qualifications that exceed actual qualifications or misrepresent their affiliation with any institution, organization, or individual; are responsible for correcting the misrepresentation or misunderstanding of their professional qualifications or affiliations.
  

Tahara Akmal, ACPE Certified Educator from MedStar Washington Hospital Center in Washington, DC.

Building and maintaining professional relationships is not always easy to do. My days at the hospital and "to do" lists get filled with many things I need to complete and check off. It can feel overwhelming at times as the list grows. I have learned that creating community through relationships at work and with my ACPE colleagues needs to be prioritized on my list.  Not only for professional and political reasons but also for my need to connect with others who understand the impact of the work we do as caregivers on our souls and lives.

Since I started training to be a CPE Educator in 2011, I have developed and maintained meaningful relationships with ACPE colleagues. REM and the Racial, Ethnic, Multicultural Invitationals were instrumental in finding diversity, community, and support within ACPE. The relationships with my ACPE colleagues are unique. I have come to know individuals who have an idea of what it is like for me to be me—an African American Muslim female CPE Educator, Chaplain, and leader.  Peers have known me during the celebratory times and difficult times.  I have also learned about my colleagues and their diverse backgrounds.  They have shared with me who they are, their experiences, accomplishments, and challenges. 

Knowing our identity, who we are and our role as educators and spiritual care providers is the goal of this ACPE standard.  The standard provides us with a solid framework to understand our roles within our institutions and our relationship with our accrediting and certifying body, ACPE. Our responsibility as leaders requires us to be mindful not to misrepresent who we are, our role, and our qualifications. 

I like to use Agazarian's Systems Centered Theory's idea of "role, goal, and context" with CPE students to help them navigate boundaries related to their identity and role in the hospital. As CPE Educators, we also need to clarify our boundaries, institutional roles, and our relationship with ACPE. Knowing our identity and role supports us in staying honest, authentic, and ethical in our representation of who we are in the spaces where we serve.

*Every situation is unique, and any member should not take action based solely on the comments in the article but to base action on an independent review of the ethical standards applicable to his/her situation.