Post Traumatic Growth with Dr. Gerry Crete.

Ep, 9 with Dr. Dorothy Goulart

Integrating Faith and Mental Health in Parish Care

This episode focuses on the practical gap between a parish noticing someone is struggling and actually knowing where to send them for help. Dr. Gerry Crete talks with Dr. Dorothy Goulart about the Elijah Institute’s certification program, the role of Catholic faith in clinical work, and the new Accompanied Network being piloted to connect parishes with mental health and support resources.We discuss why trust, competence, and ethical integration matter when faith and therapy meet, and how a parish can become a real point of coordination instead of just a place where people are prayed for and left without next steps.

Key topics

• Dr. Dorothy Goulart’s background as a licensed independent clinical social worker who also teaches graduate social work students
• The Elijah Institute certification program and how it helps clinicians integrate Catholic faith and mental health practice ethically
• The Accompanied Network as a parish-based referral and care coordination model
• Why trust and vetting matter when parishes refer people to therapists, psychiatrists, and other support services
• The challenge of finding specific providers, especially Catholic clinicians with particular demographic or specialty needs
• Moral injury and moral questions in trauma work, especially in military and combat settings
• Why spiritual competence can improve care even for non-Catholic clinicians working with Catholic clients
• The importance of meeting clients where they are and letting their faith tradition inform the clinical conversation

parish care, mental health, faith integration, Catholic counseling, referral network, moral injury

spiritual assessment, clinical competence, trust, pastoral care

Elijah Institute

Post Traumatic Growth with Dr. Gerry Crete is presented by the Elijah Institute. Find out more about Elijah Institute’s nationally approved, continuing education courses in spiritually integrated whole person care at elijah-institute.org.