The Spiritual Care Association (SCA) is the first multidisciplinary, international professional membership association for spiritual care providers that establishes evidence-based quality indicators, scope of practice, and a knowledge base for spiritual care.
SCA is leading the way to educate, certify, credential and advocate so that more people in need, regardless of religion, beliefs or cultural identification, receive effective spiritual care in all types of institutional and community settings in the U.S. and internationally. SCA is committed to serving its multidisciplinary membership and growing the chaplaincy profession.
The nonprofit SCA is an affiliate of HealthCare Chaplaincy Network (HCCN), a health care nonprofit organization founded in 1961 that offers spiritual-related information and resources, and professional chaplaincy services in hospitals, other health care settings, and online.
As a lead-up to the establishment of SCA and to transform the field, HCCN released in 2016 evidence-based quality indicators and evidence-based scope of practice.
Using this groundbreaking and transforming evidence-based model, SCA offers three types of certification:
Chaplain Credentialing (CC): For Chaplains who earn the title of Credentialed Chaplain (CC) this attests to their level of competence in the profession.
Board Certified Chaplain (BCC): For Chaplains who have earned or will earn the title of Board Certified Chaplain (BCC) this attests that they have demonstrated competence to perform all of the normal tasks within the scope of practice of chaplains.
Advanced Practice Board Certified Chaplain (APBCC): For Chaplains who have demonstrated advanced skills in the provision of and leadership in spiritual and chaplaincy care by successfully completing a standardized test of core knowledge derived from evidence-based quality indicators for spiritual care as well as a simulated patient exam that evaluates competency in direct patient care. Advanced Practice Board Certified Chaplains (APBCC) have been trained and tested in standardized curriculum based on the latest evidence in areas including department management, HIPAA regulations, the assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of spiritual distress, cultural competency, advance care directives, patient clinical care, staff support, grief, and bereavement among other essential topics.
SCA University of Theology and Spirituality
In 2019, the SCA University of Theology and Spirituality (UTS) was launched to educate and assist in the development of forward-thinking leaders and practitioners of Spiritual Care. Our faculty, staff and students are from a wide range of educational, professional, and religious backgrounds, which helps to prepare the learner for successful engagement through education and social support. The SCA University of Theology and Spirituality represents a global and international community of learners. We utilize the latest technology available to create an online learning environment that is as socially enriching as it is academically comprehensive. We believe that the social bonds created within a cohort group are extremely important to success.
Our Mission
To help students grow theologically, spiritually, and psychologically by providing the skills necessary to identify and design their paths to success. To share a process of encountering the world in a dialogical way that promotes spirituality, wholeness, holism, integration, individuation, healing, and differentiation.
Our Educational Philosophy
We recognize that the student is more than a one-dimensional being. Professors emphasize not only the academics behind each student’s study, but also the experience of connection with the individual’s own self and interaction with other learners in order to gain the skills needed for professional practice.