SAN JOSE, Calif., April 1, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Good Samaritan Hospital announced that Chaplain Robert Bruce Mackay has been named Director of Pastoral Care. Chaplain Mackay will ensure that pastoral care is available to every patient, their family members and the hospital staff, and will establish a clinical pastoral education training program and a training center for volunteer chaplains and clergy.
This week, Chaplain Mackay will be holding two services at Good Samaritan's chapel in honor of Good Friday and Easter. The Friday, April 3 and Sunday, April 5 services will both begin at 10 a.m. and are each open to the public.
"It is so important that everyone at Good Samaritan, no matter what their faith or background, have access to spiritual guidance when they are on our campus," said Paul Beaupré, CEO of Good Samaritan Hospital. "Chaplain Mackay and I have a shared vision to credential volunteers for a 24/7 spiritual care experience here. He joins us with years of experience in hospital settings, and an amazing ability to connect with people of all creeds and cultures."
Chaplain Mackay is Board Certified as a Clinical Chaplain and a Pastoral Counselor from both the College for Pastoral Supervision and Psychotherapy (CPSP) and the Association of Professional Conservative Chaplains (APCC). He most recently provided pastoral care at Jerry Pettis Memorial VA Hospital in Loma Linda, Calif., where he served for two years.
Previously, he was the Supervisor of Clinical Pastoral Education at Good Shepherd CPE Training Center in Lakewood, Calif. and at Central Philippines University in Iloilo, Philippines. Additionally, he has served as Chaplain Resident at University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) in Little Rock, Ark. and as Chaplain at Ellis Hospital in Schenectady, New York.
Chaplain Mackay has also led philanthropic medical missions in India, Nigeria, Thailand, Burma, Turkey, Philippines, Cambodia, Martinique, Singapore and Japan. He has a Masters of Divinity from Andrews University in Berrien Springs, Mich.
For more information about the clinical pastoral education program, please contact Chaplain Mackay at 408-559-2232.
About Good Samaritan Hospital
Good Samaritan Hospital is a 474 bed acute care hospital in the heart of Silicon Valley, with two locations, the main campus in San Jose, California and the Mission Oaks campus in Los Gatos, California. Recognized nationally for quality and safety, it has an "A" from The Leapfrog Group and has been voted a "Family Favorite" hospital for more than ten years. It is one of only ten hospitals nationwide to be awarded the Outstanding Achievement Award from the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer four consecutive times. Good Samaritan is a leader in neurosciences, high-risk obstetrics, advanced cardiology and innovative surgery techniques, and is a Joint Commission-certified Comprehensive Stroke Center and an accredited Chest Pain Center. Good Samaritan has been delivering elite level care with compassion since 1965. For more information visit, www.goodsamsanjose.com.