A Comparison between Reactive and Proactive Chaplaincy Approaches

Authors

  • Gordon Jones NHS Orkney

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1558/hscc.34983

Keywords:

hospital chaplaincy, spiritual care, service development, availability, accessibility, equality, justice, work enjoyment, work satisfaction

Abstract

Healthcare chaplains are expected to be competent to address diverse spiritual needs in today’s multicultural society by being compassionate, sensitive, accessible and available. What should availability and accessibility look like? This paper examines the practices of two different chaplaincy teams within the same health board, notes differences in philosophy and practical approach, comments on relative strengths and weaknesses and offers reflective conclusions. It interacts with contemporary literature and the results of original research conducted through interviews. This paper finds that healthcare organisations need to have a full and frank description of its expectations of chaplains to promote uniformity of service provision, equality of workload, and to better enable health board management to grasp the level of resourcing required. It also identifies competing concepts of patient-centred versus person-centred care, and that local expectations of the chaplain’s role can significantly clash with the chaplain’s own sense of identity.

Author Biography

  • Gordon Jones, NHS Orkney

    Gordon Jones is Spiritual Care Lead/Chaplain for NHS Orkney and is based at the Balfour Hospital in Kirkwall.

References

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Published

2019-01-19

How to Cite

Jones, G. (2019). A Comparison between Reactive and Proactive Chaplaincy Approaches. Health and Social Care Chaplaincy, 6(2), 159-176. https://doi.org/10.1558/hscc.34983

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