"Listening carefully to the stories of patients, chaplains, and healthcare providers pulled back the curtains, as it were, to the ways people make sense of illness and suffering, and how person-centred approaches to prayer and spiritual support can make a tremendous difference in these times."
— Dr. Sheryl Reimer-Kirkham is TWU’s Dean of Nursing
Dr. Sheryl Reimer-Kirkham is TWU’s Dean of Nursing. A committed educator, a respected academic leader, and an internationally regarded researcher, she brings academic distinction, a wealth of experience, and highly informed perspectives on nursing to her role.
Global project on the role of prayer in hospitals
Dr. Reimer-Kirkham’s research focuses on diversity, religion/spirituality, equity and human rights—all in relation to health and healthcare services. She has brought together international teams to study the negotiation of religious plurality, most recently with a project on the expression of prayer in Vancouver and London hospitals. Her research is captured in a newly published book, Prayer as Transgression?: The Social Relations of Prayer in Healthcare Settings (2020), co-authored with Sonya Sharma, Rachel Brown and Melania Calestani.
In 2020, Dr. Reimer-Kirkham, along with colleague Dr. Richard (Rick) Sawatzky, were inducted into the inaugural class of Fellows of the Canadian Academy of Nursing (CNA), a program that recognizes and celebrates the most accomplished nurses in Canada. Additionally, Dr. Reimer-Kirkham was a recipient of the 2019 UBC School of Nursing Centenary Medal of Distinction and was appointed in 2014 to the Royal Society of Canada’s College of New Scholars, Scientists and Artists. In addition to a Governor General’s Gold Medal, and the Elizabeth Kenney McCann Outstanding Dissertation Award, Reimer-Kirkham received the College of Registered Nurses British Columbia Research Award of Excellence in 2010.
Research on human rights and albinism in Tanzania, South Africa, and Ghana
Dr. Reimer-Kirkham is currently leading an international program of research on human rights and albinism that includes a study on mothering and albinism in Tanzania, South Africa, and Ghana. Dr. Reimer-Kirkham also conducts nursing education and knowledge translation research, and with colleagues developed the Knowledge-AS-Action Framework. She is recognized for her contributions to postcolonial feminist research in nursing. She teaches in the areas of nursing philosophy, nursing research and knowledge translation, spirituality and nursing, and health policy.
During Women’s History Month at TWU, we seek to hear from experts across campus about their areas of scholarship and research. Here below, we hear from Dr. Reimer-Kirkham about her book, Prayer as Transgression?: The Social Relations of Prayer in Healthcare Settings.
Hi Dr. Reimer-Kirkham, what are some highlights from your research on prayer in healthcare settings?
Co-leading this study with my colleague, Dr. Sonya Sharma (Kingston University London, England) was a tremendous privilege. Bringing together a research team from Vancouver and London, and from academic and clinical contexts, made for very rich exploration. We learnt how prayer occurs quietly on the edges of day-to-day healthcare, but can sometimes disrupt the clinical machinery of a hospital, such as when a patient asks for prayer from the chaplain while the operating room waits. Listening carefully to the stories of patients, chaplains, and healthcare providers pulled back the curtains, as it were, to the ways people make sense of illness and suffering, and how person-centred approaches to prayer and spiritual support can make a tremendous difference in these times. Visiting hospitals, long-term care sites, and community clinics allowed us to see how organizations working diligently to be responsive and hospitable for patients and families by opening spaces such as Muslim Prayer Rooms, First Nations Sacred Spaces, and Multi-faith Chapels for the expression of prayer, ceremony, and ritual.
As you consider prayer as an introduction of religion into the public sphere, what have you noticed?
We learnt how prayer could be a source of comfort and connection, and a way of expressing one's religious identity, all of which can be very important in coping with illness and suffering. Spiritual suffering is not limited to patients and their families, but extends to healthcare staff too, and thus workplace spirituality is increasingly growing as organizational priority, especially during the pandemic. Our participants emphasized how important it was to follow a patient's lead, so as not to be impositional with prayer. A healthcare organization needs to strike a balance, in allowing the expression of multiple forms of prayer while also supporting those who are non-religious.
During Women’s History Month, what do you wish to celebrate when it comes to women, nursing and healthcare?
The pandemic has showed how nurses are at the heart of health services. Women's History Month reminds us to celebrate these contributions. The pandemic has also highlighted the issues that exist for nurses and other women in healthcare. Women currently comprise 80% of the health sector (CIHI 2017), but are underrepresented in boardrooms and executive positions of health care organizations and institutions. Women carry the load of shiftwork. They often hold caregiving roles in the home (e.g., childcare, elder care). Women's History month reminds us to continue to advocate for gender equality.
See also: Dr. Sheryl Reimer-Kirkham's interview in Learning Matters Podcast:
TWU Learning Matters Podcast
About Trinity Western University
Founded in 1962, Trinity Western University is Canada’s premier Christian liberal arts university dedicated to equipping students to establish meaningful connections between career, life, and the needs of the world. It is a fully accredited research institution offering liberal arts and sciences, as well as professional schools in business, nursing, education, human kinetics, graduate studies, and arts, media, and culture. It has five campuses and locations: Langley, Richmond-Lansdowne, Richmond-Minoru, Ottawa, and Bellingham, WA. TWU emphasizes academic excellence, research, and student engagement in a vital faith community committed to forming leaders to have a transformational impact on culture. Learn more at www.twu.ca or follow us on Twitter @TrinityWestern, on Facebook and LinkedIn.
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