Meeting The Spiritual and Religious Needs of Staff, Patients, Visitors ...

Peninsula Community Health
Meeting The Spiritual and Religious Needs of
Staff, Patients, Visitors and Carers in Community
Hospitals
Title:
Meeting The Spiritual and Religious Needs of
Staff, Patients, Visitors and Carers in
Community Hospitals
Procedural Document Type:
Policy
Reference:
COP4
Version: V3 August 2011
Ratified by:
CIOS Community Health Services Board
Date ratified: 29 th September 2011
Freedom of Information:
This document can be released
Name of originator/author:
Mark Richards (originally developed by Peter
Knibbs
Name of responsible team:
Chaplaincy
Review Frequency:
3 Years
Review date: 29 th September 2014
Target audience:
All staff, patients and visitors in Community
Hospitals
Exec Signature (Hard Copy Only):
Registered in England and Wales No: 7564579
Registered office: Peninsula Community Health CIC,
Sedgemoor Centre, Priory Road, St Austell PL25 5AS
www.peninsulacommunityhealth.co.uk
Quality care, closer to you
Peninsula Community Health is a not for profit
Community Interest Company responsible for
providing NHS adult community health services
in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly

Meeting Spiritual and Religious Needs
Contents
CONTEXT AND SERVICE FRAMEWORK ................................................................ 3
1 Introduction ........................................................................................................ 3
2 Definitions .......................................................................................................... 3
3 The Chaplaincy Service ..................................................................................... 4
3.1 Recruitment / Volunteers ............................................................................. 4
3.2 Availability.................................................................................................... 4
3.3 Arrangements .............................................................................................. 5
3.4 Storage of Artefacts and Symbols................................................................ 5
3.5 Recording..................................................................................................... 5
3.6 Bereavement Services................................................................................. 5
3.7 Emergency and Major Incident .................................................................... 5
3.8 Complaints................................................................................................... 5
4 Duties................................................................................................................. 5
5 Confidentiality and Data Protection .................................................................... 7
6 Risk Management Strategy Implementation....................................................... 7
6.1 Implementation ............................................................................................ 7
6.2 Training and Support ................................................................................... 7
6.3 Dissemination .............................................................................................. 8
6.4 Storing the Procedural Document ................................................................ 8
6.5 Equality Impact Assessment........................................................................ 8
7 Process for Monitoring Effective Implementation ............................................... 8
8 Associated Documentation & References.......................................................... 9
9 Appendix 1 - CENSUS DATA........................................................................... 10
Please Note the Intention of this Document
The aim of this policy is to meet the needs of today’s multi-cultural and diverse society by
respecting and supporting the spiritual, religious and cultural needs of staff, patients, carers
and visitors, including people who do not identify with a particular religion or belief, during
their contact with Peninsula Community Health.
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Meeting Spiritual and Religious Needs
CONTEXT AND SERVICE FRAMEWORK
The Department of Health is committed through the NHS Plan to support delivery of NHS
services that put patients at the heart of everything they do. This includes having a
chaplaincy service in the community hospitals that meets the needs of the people who come
into contact with it. This commitment is supported by the following documents the
information in which has been taken into account when developing this policy:
The Human Rights Act 1998 Article 9, introduced in October 2000, enshrines in law the right
of the individual to religious observance.
NHS Chaplaincy 2003
Caring for the Spirit 2003
Code of Conduct for Healthcare Chaplains 2006
CQC Essential Standards
Improving Working Lives
Standards for Spiritual Healthcare 2010
“Meeting the varied spiritual needs of patients, staff and visitors is fundamental to the care
the NHS provides”
1 Introduction
(NHS Chaplaincy: November 2003)
Peninsula Community Health (PCH) recognises that health, well being and happiness are
reliant on both physical and psychological needs being met. Most people, at some point in
their lives, needs support. This is particularly true in time of uncertainty, loneliness, stress,
illness, guilt or death. This policy has been developed to make arrangements to enable
where possible, the spiritual, pastoral, religious and cultural requirements of all staff,
patients, carers and visitors, whatever their belief, to be met.
The organisation is committed to working in collaboration with others, including health and
social care partners from the statutory, community and voluntary sectors, to develop a
service that meets the needs of all who come into contact with it. PCH will engage in honest
and open discussion, and actively listen to the views of others, to ensure that a relationship
of trust grows in order to support and encourage the development of the service. All
Managers will be accessible to Hospital Chaplains in order to discuss any aspect of the
service or its delivery.
PCH will encourage individuals to understand, respect and value diverse religious and
spiritual behaviours and to eliminate discrimination.
2 Definitions
Chaplain - All spiritual care givers
Chaplaincy - Spiritual care and spiritual healthcare to include pastoral, spiritual and religious
care
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3 The Chaplaincy Service
Meeting Spiritual and Religious Needs
The Chaplaincy service aims to share in the healing process by enabling patients, their
visitors and staff to express their spiritual, emotional, religious and cultural needs, and to
respond appropriately, whatever their beliefs, culture or lifestyle.
“A tradition of caring for the sick and supporting those who care for them is common to all
faiths. It is often at the time of sickness, or in watching a loved one experience illness that
some of the deepest spiritual questions are asked and the greatest challenges to the spirit
arise. In their unique role Chaplains work with all healthcare professionals and across the
whole organisation to provide the spiritual elements of the holistic care offered by the NHS”
(Caring for the Spirit: November 2003)
The Service promotes links between the trust and local communities and helps to facilitate
appropriate, spiritual religious and cultural care within a context that is alien to many and
thus providing people with comfort, counsel and care.
The service will:
Have a visible and accessible presence
Adopt a person centred and patient led approach
Act as a link between staff and patients etc
Provide an opportunity for worship
Provide pastoral care
Offer non-judgemental counsel and support
Act as an informed resource in ethical, theological and pastoral matters
Plan and deliver educational and training programmes to staff members
Act as a link between the organisation and faith and local communities
Fulfil local and national governance requirements
3.1 Recruitment / Volunteers
Chaplains are appointed through NHS recruitment procedures and will hold the authority of
the faith community to act as a representative. Candidate selection and interview panels will
have representation from the faith community concerned.
Chaplaincy volunteers will be recruited through the existing Trust Volunteer Policy and Trust
recruitment procedures and will be acceptable to the faith communities. All volunteers will
receive an appointment letter, contract, job description and the training and support
appropriate to their role.
All chaplains and volunteers will be subject to a Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) and
Occupational Health check.
3.2 Availability
It is accepted best practice, certainly in acute trust hospitals that the chaplaincy service is
available at all times. The present arrangements do not formally allow this in the Community
Hospitals. The intention is to develop a system to ensure wider availability out of hours
availability in partnership with the chaplains in the acute trust
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Meeting Spiritual and Religious Needs
3.3 Arrangements
Where possible a suitable room should be identified in each of the hospitals, where prayer,
reflection and/or religious services can take place. The rooms should if at all possible have
wheelchair access. Patients who are unable to leave their bed will receive chaplaincy
services at their bedside, taking account the requirements for privacy and dignity as far as
practicable.
3.4 Storage of Artefacts and Symbols
Artefacts should be stored securely and accessible at all times upon request.
3.5 Recording
The Chaplain will record details of their work and training which can be made available to the
Lead Chaplain upon request.
3.6 Bereavement Services
All NHS Trusts and healthcare organisations provide support and advice to families and staff
at the time of bereavement and chaplaincy should be a part of this. The organisation will
extend this support to staff who suffer personal bereavement.
3.7 Emergency and Major Incident
The Chaplaincy service will offer support to staff and casualties involved in any emergency
incident either during or after the event. The Chaplaincy Lead will be included on the list of
Major Incident contacts and be included in training activities relating to Major Incident
planning.
3.8 Complaints
Complaints relating to the Chaplaincy service can be made directly to the Chaplain via PALS
or through the NHS Trust Complaints Service.
Further information and advice:
Patient Advice and Liaison Service
Hospital Chaplain Via Hospital Manager
The Chaplaincy Lead Via Royal Cornwall Hospital Switchboard (office hours only)
4 Duties
This section includes an overview of individual roles, departmental and committee duties
including levels of responsibility for the policy:
The Lead Chaplain will:
Be accountable for the performance of the Chaplains , in the first instance, to the
Locality Managers and ultimately to the Director of Operational Services
Adhere to the Code of Conduct for Healthcare Chaplains and Standards for Spiritual
Healthcare 2010
Ensure compliance with the clinical and corporate governance arrangements in
conjunction with PCH staff
Offer professional leadership to the hospital Chaplains
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Meeting Spiritual and Religious Needs
Act as an information resource on issues of spiritual and pastoral care, faith, religion
and culture
Advise PCH on national and local policy
Monitor the provision of Chaplaincy services
Undertake the annual appraisals of the Chaplains and produce personal
development plans in line with the Knowledge and Skills Framework
Facilitate the meeting of all Hospital Chaplains twice a year
Arrange access to appropriate mandatory and individual training and development
sessions
Act as a point of contact and liaison on matters of spiritual care and chaplaincy for
the organisation, patient groups and local faith groups
Chaplains should:
Be accountable for their performance, in the first instance, to the Locality Managers
and to the Lead Chaplain
Be accountable to their faith communities for the aspects of care they provide
Adhere to the Code of Conduct for Healthcare Chaplains and Standards for Spiritual
Healthcare 2010
Be responsible for identifying risk, reporting to the Locailty Manager and taking
appropriate action to reduce or eliminate the risk
Retain the religious responsibility for his/her own faith community
Be a resource to advise on dietary requirements and food in relation to their religious
and cultural needs
Respect the values of other faiths
Supervise the work of and offer support to volunteers
Retain responsibility for faith room and artefacts
Line Managers should:
Act in a positive way when issues of a spiritual or religious nature are raised
Ensure that individuals are able to practise, where this does not adversely affect
patient care or compromise essential operation of the organisation’s work, their own
religion or belief
Ward Managers should:
Ask patients whether they wish to have their religious affiliation recorded and that
they give their consent to that information being shared with the chaplain
Advise patients of the availability of the chaplain and chaplaincy service
Ensure that religious and spiritual needs are recorded and communicated to the
Chaplaincy team.
Work with the chaplain in the provision of spiritual and religious care to staff, patients
and carers
Each individual should:
Promote the creation of an environment of diversity
Treat the religious and spiritual beliefs of others with dignity and respect
Challenge discrimination
Report incidents of religious insensitivity, intolerance and discrimination
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Meeting Spiritual and Religious Needs
5 Confidentiality and Data Protection
Religious affiliation is classed under the Data Protection Act as “sensitive personal data and
any disclosure would, therefore, be required to satisfy a Schedule 3 condition unless there is
a legal duty to disclose”. (Schedule 3 sets out how, under specific conditions, disclosure
may be allowed)
Staff should not pass on information to the Chaplain on the spiritual or religious beliefs of a
patient without the patient’s explicit informed consent. Patients will also be advised that they
are free to change their mind at any time. (see NHS Chaplaincy DH 2003)
The NHS Confidentiality Code of Practice says: “Where a patient is not competent to
disclose, e.g. due to unconsciousness, the decision rests with those responsible for the
provision of care, acting in the best interests of the patient. The views of family members
about what the patient would have wanted should be given considerable weight in these
circumstances.” If a patient, who is capable of giving meaningful consent, fails to respond to
consent seeking questions this should be interpreted as unwillingness to have their religious
affiliation captured and passed on to the chaplaincy service.
An incident raised by a member of staff in relation to religious or spiritual intolerance or
discrimination will be treated seriously and in confidence, as far as practicable. If confidence
cannot be maintained the complainant will be advised prior to any further action being taken.
All parties involved will be advised, by their Line Manager, of the support available to help
them through the incident. Employees raising an issue will not be victimised for doing so.
Should a staff member perceive that a member of the public is being intolerant or
discriminatory then that staff member should advise a senior member of staff as soon as
possible to ensure that prompt action is taken and the incident is recorded on Datix.
Further guidance can be sought from the Caldicott Guardian or Data Protection Officer.
6 Risk Management Strategy Implementation
6.1 Implementation
The Chaplaincy Lead will be responsible for monitoring the implementation and
success of the policy and the progress against the actions identified from the audits.
6.2 Training and Support
On appointment, or soon after, all Hospital Chaplains will have training allowing
them to practice as a Healthcare Chaplain within the NHS. Ongoing and specific
training requirements will be identified through appraisal, undertaken by the
Chaplain Lead, and will be provided following agreement of their personal
development plans with the Locality Manager.
Staff will receive training from Chaplains on:
o
o
o
o
Relevance and importance of spirituality
The important attributes and potential benefits that can be offered by the
chaplaincy service
Appropriate spiritual, cultural and religious care for all world faiths
Copies of a resource Religions and Cultures – A Guide to Beliefs, Customs
and Diversity for Health and Social Care Services are available to all
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Meeting Spiritual and Religious Needs
chaplains and community hospital nursing teams as a reference with multifaith
emphasis.
Professional supervision will be available from the Lead Chaplain who will make
contact with the Chaplains.
6.3 Dissemination
Once ratified this policy will be loaded to the intranet (read only) and replace
Chaplaincy Policy 2007
Staff will be made aware of its existence through:
o
o
o
o
o
o
Information leaflets
Welcome packs
Ward staff
Visits by the chaplains
Posters
Website
Confirmation of receipt is not required for this procedural document.
6.4 Storing the Procedural Document
The signed procedural document will be stored (hard copy) centrally, as will the
digital (soft copy) version.
6.5 Equality Impact Assessment
Peninsula Community Health aims to design and implement services, policies and
measures that meet the diverse needs of our service, population and workforce,
ensuring that none are placed at a disadvantage over others.
As part of its development, this strategy and its impact on equality have been
assessed. The assessment is to minimise and if possible remove any
disproportionate impact on employees on the grounds of race sex, disability, age,
sexual orientation or religious belief. No detriment was identified.
7 Process for Monitoring Effective Implementation
A baseline assessment of the service will be undertaken using the benchmarks within
the NHS Chaplaincy guidance and Standards for Spiritual Healthcare 2010
An annual audit of compliance with national standards will be undertaken.
Feedback from patients and others using the service will be sought to determine
satisfaction with the service and to be used in the development of the service.
Reports from the Chaplaincy Lead on the standard and quality of the service will be
provided to the Board, through the responsible Director, on six monthly basis. The
report will include the learning and actions taken as a result of staff, patient, and
carer feedback.
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Meeting Spiritual and Religious Needs
8 Associated Documentation & References
Improving the patient experience A place to die with dignity: Creating a
supportive environment NHS Estates May 2005.
NHS Chaplaincy: Meeting the Religious and Spiritual Needs of Patients and
Staff Department of Health 2003.
Caring for the spirit: A strategy for the chaplaincy and spiritual healthcare
workforce (2003) south Yorkshire Workforce and Development
Confederation.
Religions and Cultures – A Guide to Beliefs, Customs and Diversity for Health
and Social Care Services. R&C Publications, Edinburgh 2004.
Standards for Spiritual Healthcare: Multi Faith Group for Healthcare
Chaplaincy 2010
UKBHC (2010) Code of Conduct for Healthcare Chaplains
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Meeting Spiritual and Religious Needs
Appendix 1 - CENSUS DATA
76.8% of the United Kingdom regard themselves as having some religious affiliation
(2001 census). Faith groups make a particular and distinctive contribution to the
development of stronger communities that are truly cohesive.
% of people stating England & Cornwall & Cornwall &
religion as:-
Wales IOS IOS
% % Number
Buddhist 0.28 0.19 945
Hindu 1.06 0.05 240
Jewish 0.50 0.09 435
Muslim 2.97 0.13 672
Sikh 0.63 0.02 105
Other religions 0.29 0.46 2320
Christian 71.75 74.32 372540
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