Hospital Chaplaincy

The Interchurch Council for Hospital Chaplaincy (ICHC) was established in 1996 having evolved from a service that began in 1868 with the employment of the first hospital chaplain in Dunedin. The organisation is governed by representatives of a collective of denominations and independent representation including The Methodist Church of New Zealand. Statistics recorded by the ICHC over the past six months indicate almost 36,000 patients in hospitals throughout Aotearoa were seen by a chaplain, almost 4,000 staff were supported by a chaplain and more than 18,000 spiritual rituals were carried out. Hospital chaplaincy is a valuable ministry, clearly appreciated.

Most of the funding for hospital chaplaincy comes from Te Whatu Ora, Health New Zealand, topped up by a variety of funding streams from hospitals, churches and private donors. David Hough, National Operations Manager for the ICHC, says, “Our contract with Te Whatu Ora provides for 30 full-time equivalent positions throughout New Zealand. Some funding is tagged to provide chaplains working in mental health. Additional funding comes from local hospitals. A third of our income is the result of donations from church denominations, local hospitals and individual donors. We welcome contributions from willing partners”.

Currently there are chaplains in 40 hospitals throughout Aotearoa New Zealand with larger hospitals covered by teams of chaplains working fulltime and part-time hours. “We have 90 chaplains covering 57 FTE, 62 are ecumenical chaplains and 28 Catholic chaplains (12.8 FTE). Some smaller hospitals are staffed part-time or covered by volunteer chaplaincy. There are a few smaller public hospitals and remote locations without chaplaincy at present,” David says. In most hospitals, volunteers supplement the work of the paid chaplains.

Hospital chaplains work in collaboration with health professionals to offer holistic spiritual care by journeying with, listening to, and advocating for patients and/or their whanau or hospital staff in a manner that is consistent with International Chaplaincy Models (e.g., WHO pastoral intervention coding). Pastoral, spiritual, and religious care is offered in accordance with accepted models of health and wellbeing (e.g. Te Whare Tapa Wha, Fonofale, Te Wheke, etc.).

David says, “Many of our chaplains are ordained ministers; however, some come from nursing, social work, counselling and education backgrounds. Chaplains need to be in good standing with their church denomination or at least have the support of their church. For safety purposes chaplains also need to be Police Vetted and vaccinated against Covid-19. Theological training is desirable and we encourage chaplains to complete Clinical Pastoral Education”.

Skills required need to cover a service to all people regardless of their religious denomination, faith, belief system, ethnicity, gender, or sexual orientation. “Chaplains engage people at all stages of the life journey where people connect with hospital care and encounter the joys and trauma that may result. Chaplains require a mature practical theological, strong pastoral skills and solid personal and professional boundaries. Awareness of different religions, faiths and beliefs, an understanding of human development and life stages are also important. They will benefit from basic counselling and coaching skills; however, being an attuned active listener is key! Having strong liturgical skills is important in most hospital chaplaincy positions. Chaplains need to quickly make connections with people and assess what support they may require. An awareness of how a hospital functions and flows is beneficial”.

Situations Often Vacant

David says it is not easy to fill the positions on offer. “Finding candidates with the desired skills and experience is not easy. Chaplaincy is quite different to parish ministry and there are times where it may feel unrelenting, particularly due to the high incidence of trauma. It is a key missional role that provides variety and makes a significant community impact. A sense of calling can certainly help too, as funding limitations restrict what we can currently pay chaplains. We are doing what we can to change this!

A Chaplain Reports

Rev Ruth Sandiford Phelan has spent three years in her role as Chaplain at Hawkes Bay Hospital. It is a role she has had more than 25 years preparing for as she draws daily on skills acquired since she ordained for ministry in the Uniting Church of Australia in 1995.

In addition to several stints in parish ministry, Ruth has spent time as a dedicated palliative care chaplain at Gisborne Hospital and as a chaplain to students at Tairāwhiti Polytechnic. Each role has contributed to her ability to respond appropriately to the huge variety of situations that unfold at Hawkes Bay hospital. “Palliative care chaplaincy was good groundwork as there is palliative care at hospital. An enduring memory from my time at polytechnic was the sudden death of a student who drowned when she was returning from Auckland to Gisborne. It was a powerful time. I was amazed by how many students turned out for the memorial service and then to another one when her parents arrived. These experiences influence me today.”

Ruth shares a seven-days a week 24-hour hospital chaplaincy roster with four other chaplains. The hospital provides care services to all ages from pediatrics to geriatrics. Ruth works one weekend each month and that includes leading a Sunday service in a small chapel closely connected to their office. On-call chaplains are involved in one-off specialised events like the blessing of a room where someone has died. Not all callouts are for conventional pastoral care. 

One night Ruth was called in to offer support to a woman who had seen a ghost. “I listened to her story, offered comfort and did a blessing of cleansing in the room,” Ruth says.

Each day starts with the chaplains praying together before they join clinicians for a multidisciplinary meeting to share information before allocating wards or patients to the chaplains on duty. 

“Working in collaboration with physiotherapists, specialist nurses, Māori health professionals, occupational therapists, dieticians, pharmacists and others involved in patient care gives us an understanding and insight into what is going on.

“It is not unusual on a single day to meet a person who is dying, someone who has been told they have a terminal illness, or news of a condition that will have a huge life impact. We might meet families who have lost a person or sit with someone who has dementia. A single day can involve intensive pastoral care.”

Beyond the diversity and intensity of the workload, the people that the chaplains minister to differs markedly from parish ministry. Ruth says, “In a parish most people are Christian – a hospital is a microcosm of people on the street; Buddhist, atheist, agnostic, elderly who have not been to church for years and devout Christians. It is a huge cross-section of society. It can be exhausting, and it is important to learn to let go at the end of each day,” Ruth says.

Daily prayer sessions provide the ideal space for chaplains to share the issues that are affecting them. All the chaplains meet regularly with professional external providers for supervision, and pastoral care from their own parish networks is also important in managing the personal impact of their work.

“Our main ministry is to be a presence that sparks a person’s connection with God. To help people find what is meaningful in their lives, what gives them hope. What matters? Parish ministry is totally different. That is taking a group of believers on a journey and then there is all the administration, meetings, dealing with buildings. It is quite different although at the nub of both is pastoral care and support,” Ruth says.