Jackson hospital focuses on patients as people

In today's Jackson Citizen Patriot, under the headline "Allegiance Health, doctors focus on patient, not just health issue", Monetta Harr quotes Thomas Moore who spoke about soul in Jackson three years ago:

"Moore said he believes illness affects not only the body but the spirit and soul, yet most doctors focus only on the problem, not the whole person.

"Care of the soul is not the same as spirituality in medicine. Soul material is different, much more ordinary and common, yet it touches deep emotions," Moore said in a telephone interview.

"Doctors, nurses, technicians, they are all trained to take care of your body. Trained in biology and chemistry and pharmacology and not too good dealing with you as a human being. There are doctors good at dealing with people and those don't know what to do with people," Moore said."

Harr describes features at Allegiance Health that support Moore's views in Care of the Soul in Medicine (Hay House, 2010):

"Jackie Liebowitz, vice president of patient care continuum at Allegiance, said a healing environment is one of seven "values" the hospital has focused on since 1999, from allowing patients to choose what food to eat and when to eat it, to the color of walls in patient rooms.

Soft music, paintings hung on walls and in rooms and natural elements such as stone and wood are all part of the plan. Water is another element, with a new waterfall near the emergency room and fish tanks on some floors."