News from our Sector Ministers  

 

Amanda Pink

Lead Chaplain, Maidstone & Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust

One of the things that draws me to a ministry of hospital chaplaincy is that it is, in many ways, a humble ministry. This is a ministry that is carried out daily at the coal-face of some of the biggest things we human beings face: chronic illness, life-changing diagnoses or acute and serious changes in our health, baby loss, and death. What can be offered up in the face of these? And yet, sometimes and somehow our little ‘bread and fishes’ offerings seem to be transformed into something of deep significance:

• A patient with a seriously life-limiting illness says: “I feel vulnerable. When you and your colleagues come to visit me, it helps me feel safe.”
• The lips of a dying patient who is hardly responsive move along with the words of the Lord’s Prayer as they are said at their bedside in their final hours.
• Someone who lives with chronic mental ill-health connects with faith in a crisis, seeks us out, and from there makes new supportive contacts.
• A palliative patient, tired of putting on a brave face for others, says “Thank you for just letting me be sad.”
• A Muslim member of staff shares how much it has meant to them to be able to have space provided to pray during Ramadan, helping them draw strength for the challenges of their work. 
• The honouring of the lives that might have been, as we bless the remains of early miscarriages, or lead would-be parents through simple but personal funerals.

Hospital chaplaincy is also, undoubtedly, a ministry that relies heavily on teamwork. We may ease someone’s pain by bringing comfort, but thank God for those with the skill and knowledge to give medicine, strengthen muscles, change dressings, perform operations, make plans for discharge and so much more. Thank God for the wide team of chaplaincy volunteers who with open hearts and minds give their time and care to more patients than could possibly be seen by our small team of chaplains without them. Thank God for all the colleagues who help us navigate IT systems, financing, parking issues, DBS checks, catering and so on. Thank God for my chaplain colleagues, who share the burden, help staff the on-call, and willingly contribute their wisdom, kindness, faith and skill. And thank God for the communities of faith, nurturing the faith so important to some of our patients, providing them with much-valued visits from familiar faces, and doing the job of coming alongside people in the long-term. How good it is to be part of a bigger whole!

Prayer requests:

• Please pray for our patients, especially those experiencing serious ill health or facing death.
• Please pray for the families and loved ones of those who are in hospital.
• Please pray for the staff working at the coal-face, providing care in what can be challenging conditions.
• Please pray for all the support staff, who work hard often behind the scenes, but without whom care could not be given.
• Please pray our leaders – from those managing and leading our NHS Trusts to those at government level, that they would have the wisdom they need to make good decisions around the provision and resourcing of our healthcare.
• And please pray for our team chaplains and volunteers, that we might be ever learning and growing as we offer up what we can.

Christopher White 

Head of Chaplaincy Services for East Kent Hospitals University Foundation Trust

Spiritual care has been at the heart of the National Health Service since it began in 1948. 

We haven’t been here quite that long but the Chaplaincy team at East Kent Hospitals University Foundation Trust is deeply embedded in the life of our hospitals. This integration ensures that spiritual care is an essential part of holistic patient, carer and staff support, particularly during critical, traumatic and end-of-life stages of the journey of life.

Chaplains help patients and carers navigate profound emotional and existential questions such as:

• Why is this happening to me or my loved one?
• What is the meaning behind suffering and loss?
• Is there any hope or peace in this situation?

Spiritual care is not limited to times of crisis. Chaplains also support patients during times of recovery and celebration, maintaining a compassionate presence throughout a hospital admission.
 
Chaplains are available on wards daily and offer a 24/7 on-call service for urgent needs via the hospital switchboard. We provide inclusive, non-judgmental care to individuals of all beliefs—religious or non-religious—and can also offer faith-specific support when required.