Advances in brain imaging and the neurosciences allow previously unimaginable insights into the workings of the human mind, but not necessarily how to translate that knowledge into a benefit for patients or providers. This is the root of the T. Denny Sanford Institute for Empathy and Compassion’s research. Join us for this expert panel hosted by Schwartz Center CEO Michael Gustafson, MD, MBA to learn from several Sanford Institute leaders how they are leveraging the neurobiology of empathy and compassion to create initiatives that are game-changing for medical education and patient care.
Learn from the institute’s experts:
William Mobley, MD, PhD, Director, Sanford Institute for Empathy and Compassion
Lisa Eyler, PhD, Clinical Research Psychologist and Director, Center for Empathy and Compassion Training in Medical Education
Evonne Kaplan-Liss, MD, MPH, Director, Center for Compassionate Communication
Val (Valerie) Lantz-Gefroh, MFA, Director of Communication Education, Center for Compassionate Communication
COVID has upended the ways in which we understand what it means to grieve and to mourn. During this webinar, we invite you to join us in reflecting on our experiences of grief, loss and mourning in the time of COVID, as EOL founder Michael Hebb moderates a conversation with Dr. Rana Awdish, best-selling author and critical-care physician at Henry Ford Hospital; Sensei Koshin Paley Ellison, MFA, LMSW, DMIN, co-founder of the New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care and a Jungian psychotherapist; and Dr. Candi K. Cann, thanatologist and associate professor of Baylor University.
Grief and loss are a part of the human experience, particularly so in medicine, where we witness both life-altering moments and death on a daily basis. Many of us were socialized to believe we need to grin and bear it, to move on with our practice and our lives without understanding and engaging with how grief and loss affect us as people and practitioners. Amid COVID-19, grief has become particularly pronounced as families are separated from their hospitalized loved ones, we are often engaging with patients through a Zoom screen, and many of our patients are dying, often alone. How might the reading and writing of stories help us to shine a light on the invisible suffering many of us bear, particularly these days? In this session, Sunita Puri, MD, discusses how writers have explored the territory of grief and loss in healing ways, and how those of us working with patients on the front line might do the same. Following the presentation, Schwartz Center Chief Medical Officer Beth Lown, MD, moderates a brief Q&A.
Neil Greenberg, MD, FRCPsych, Professor of Defense Mental Health, King’s College London, and international expert on trauma risk management and prevention shares what healthcare organizations need to know and do to manage traumatic stress. Dr. Greenberg draws on his more than 23 years of deployment as a psychiatrist and researcher to many hostile environments including Afghanistan and Iraq. Following Dr. Greenberg’s presentation, Schwartz Center Chief Medical Officer Beth Lown hosts a brief Q&A.
The COVID-19 pandemic presents clinicians with communication challenges most have never faced before. Things like conducting goals-of-care conversations over Zoom or walking a family member through a last goodbye over the phone are happening daily. In this webinar, Anthony Back, MD, talks about clinical wisdom gained in Seattle and New York City, and the COVID-Ready Communication Playbook now available at vitaltalk.org.
Patricia Watson, PhD, and Richard Westphal, PhD, RN, discuss specific strategies healthcare professionals can use to address the five essential human needs that support recovery from adversity and stress for patients and families. They also explain how to use the Stress First Aid framework to assess for stress injury, discuss patient needs and make referrals to other supports.
Join us for a conversation with Susan David, PhD, renowned psychologist, TED speaker, and expert on emotions, as she discusses how to cultivate “Emotional Agility” in the context of the rapidly changing landscape of the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. David draws on her twenty-plus years of research to help listeners gain insight into how to cultivate emotional agility within oneself and within organizations in stressful times.
Schwartz Center Chief Medical Officer Beth Lown, MD, joins Patricia Watson, PhD, of the National Center for PTSD, and Richard Westphal, PhD, RN, of the UVA School of Nursing, for a conversation about what healthcare leaders can do to support their teams during the COVID-19 crisis.
Patricia Watson, PhD, of the National Center for PTSD discusses ways that healthcare workers can manage stress — theirs and others’ — as we face the ever-changing circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic.
© 2025 The Schwartz Center. All Rights Reserved.
