In hospitals, Chaplains are there to assist and not interfere; therefore, it is important to contact the chaplain during the time a parishioner from your church, Temple, Mosque, is hospitalized. A person's faith and faith community can play a vital role in the recovery process. The Chaplain’s goal is to harness the power of both for healing.
Chaplains recognize that collaboration with community clergy is something important and desirable. They are there as colleagues, not competitors. The hospital chaplain is in a position to visit sick patient during times pastors and other parishioners are unable to be there. In addition, as part of the interdisciplinary team caring for the patients, the chaplain can become an advocate for addressing patient’s needs and also a liaison to both the family and the community clergy. Personally in my capacity as a hospital chaplain I double as a patient relations officer and patient advocate.
Hospital chaplains regularly join clergy in prayer for the sick parishioners, and strive to assist them as best as they can. Visiting clergy may have questions or concerns which a chaplain is often able to address and sometimes rapidly resolve. Chaplains are there to serve, and are always glad to have community clergy contact them and draw upon their expertise for the benefit of sick patient parishioners.
The chaplain serves the hospital staff as well. Everyone from physician to the person cleaning the floors can benefit from chaplains kind words, a smile, or a willingness to really listen. Like pastors in the church, rabbis in a Temple, Imams in Mosques, chaplain will allow God to work in and through them for the benefit of the patient. You may be pleasantly surprised at how many people are touched, blessed, and helped through a simple chaplain’s smile. You will be surprised how staff may confine to the hospital chaplain for spiritual guidance. My advice here is that pastors, Imams, rabbi, and parishioners among other spiritual leaders should encourage those working in hospitals to utilize the services of the chaplain.
As part of their ethical guideline, chaplains are aware that protecting the privacy of patients and the confidential information related to them has always been important. Chaplains know that patients have the right to release or prohibit the release of information about them. Chaplains respect patient’s decision. Chaplain will not lease patient information on the phone even when the caller is claiming to be the clergy to the patient.
Once again I want to remind all spiritual leaders to encourage their parishioners who are patients in the hospital or employees of the hospital to utilize the services provided by the chaplain.