3RD ANNUAL CONTEMPLATIVE CARE AWARDS

We are delighted to take a moment and honor two core members of the Urban Zen Integrative Therapy faculty team: Robert Chodo Campbell and Koshin Paley Ellison, founders of the New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care. These two inspired individuals have done so much to support us here at Urban Zen (see their recent prayer for Boston here), and we’re thrilled to celebrate them in any way we can.

We were reminded of their beautiful gifts and necessary work at the 3rd Annual Contemplative Care Awards, which took place at the Rubin Museum last night. The evening celebrates extraordinary talent within the contemplative care field, an arena that is often overlooked but so essential to the integrative healthcare process.

The New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care has championed the importance of this message in a profound way. It is the first Buddhist organization to offer fully accredited chaplaincy training in America and the organization delivers contemplative approaches to care through education, direct service and meditation practice. Robert and Koshin have been a key component of the UZIT curriculum and training and we continue to be filled with gratitude for what they bring to our wellbeing commitment and our efforts to shift the healthcare paradigm. We couldn’t do it without them.

Returning to Haiti

My return to Haiti – at long last! After six months of being away, I was beyond thrilled to visit this land of creativity and it was a dream come true to bring my friend and fellow designer Robert Lee Morris with me.

Sharing these artisans with Robert was a very touching experience for me. There was such an astonishing exchange of awe and respect; artist to artist.

I was amazed by the progress and developments that have taken place in the months since I’ve been away. This continued rebuilding of Haiti is breathtaking and, in my opinion, you can see this growth most clearly within the artisan communities. The tremendous need for vocational education became even more clear to me. I have seen such growth amongst the artisans that we’ve been working with – Pascale Theard and Paula Coles are extraordinary examples of vocational education at work and I am excited to see this scale.

We were also able to meet with Caroline Sada who shared her latest development with us: a beautiful school in the heart of Cité Soleil. With such a small team she was able to do so much, in an area that is most vulnerable and and for the future of the country: the children. It was all so inspiring.

The bottom line is this: I really miss being in Haiti and I can’t wait to go back.

Reflections: Urban Zen Integrative Therapy Cycle 3 at UCLA

BY GILLIAN CILIBRASI

“Imagine a healthcare system where the patient is treated, not just the disease. Imagine a system where eastern healing techniques, yoga therapy, essential oil therapy, nutrition and contemplative care are used in combination with western medicine in a holistic approach to patient care.”

In 2009 I was drawn to the UZIT Program as a practitioner and especially drawn to the notion that drove the program… to imagine. I love being a part of something new, something innovative. Donna Karan’s words inspired me to join a movement to revamp patient-care as we know it- especially since we will all likely be patients at one point in our lives.

Some time ago, I heard someone say that the word imagination means image in action. These words are especially resonant now with the work we are doing in the Urban Zen Integrative Therapy Program. As I sit here watching the 50 trainees in the current training at the UCLA Health System move through the integration of the UZIT modalities I realize that we know no longer have to imagine, we have acted. We are in this new paradigm of blending east and west. At UCLA Health they call it “East Meets Best”, signifying the arrival of the UZIT eastern modalities into the finest medical institution on the west coast. These trainees are telling me of the profound experience they are having- simply by being able to offer their patients a body scan or propping them in a more comfortable and efficient position for healing- drugless offerings that allow their patients to relax without having to administer additional medication. 

While observing these practitioners, I visualize a pebble being thrown into a pond- concentric circles radiating outward to encompass all of their patients, loved ones, and the staff that they will touch with this newfound knowledge. Many of them are just beginning their journey using the UZIT modalities of yoga therapy, Reiki, essential oil therapy, contemplative care and nutrition for self-care. For this, all of the patients at UCLA are blessed with the opportunity for an enhanced care plan and an invitation to become an active participant in their own healing. I am honored and grateful to be here to witness the realization of Donna’s vision.

In gratitude,

Gillian Cilibrasi

Urban Zen Integrative Therapy Program Director

Keep up with UZITs in training here.