New draft guidelines on NHS chaplaincies could seriously undermine the work of Catholic chaplains in hospitals, it was claimed this week.
Liverpool Auxiliary Bishop Tom Williams told The Tablet that the new guidelines seek to “nationalise” hospital chaplaincies, and expresses concerns that they require a “professionalism of health-care chaplaincy which may be incompatible with a denominational approach”.
“This document is clearly intended to establish an NHS Chaplaincy as a single professional entity, leaving little room for local religious and faith communities,” said Bishop Williams, who is chairman of the Health and Social Care Advisory Group at the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales.
The underlying fear of the Church is that the needs of individual Catholics may be unmet or overlooked.
Jim McManus, vice chairman of the advisory group, echoed Bishops Williams’ concerns, saying: “In the previous guidelines, set out in 2003, there’s a sense that the individual faith needs are central. In the new document, you get a feeling that any chaplain will do and that some patients – especially those who are elderly and very ill – might be lucky if they get the chaplain who represents their own faith.”
Explaining that the guidelines came at a time when he was increasingly hearing about patients’ faith needs not being met, Mr McManus said: “I have heard stories about some Anglican chaplains saying there’s no difference between Catholic and Anglican Communion, and I’ve heard about Anglican chaplains giving Catholics Communion and Absolution.
“The instinct of this document is to professionalise the chaplaincy service so it can be controlled. But the Catholic notion of what a hospital chaplain is and what he or she offers doesn’t fit with that model – this isn’t about job security or length of working hours or other red tape, it’s about providing for the spiritual requirements of our community at the point of need.”
Fr Maurice Pearce, Catholic chaplain for Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said concerns about the new guidelines tallied with his own experiences, adding: “I have found myself at odds with the chaplaincy team here because they want to go round the hospital presenting themselves as a chaplaincy team and I think that would confuse Catholics.”
A spokesperson for NHS England denied the new guidelines aimed to create a “generic” model of chaplaincy, and said they had been developed in partnership with a range of stakeholders, including the Catholic Church, through its membership of the Health Chaplaincy Faith and Belief Group (HCFBG) and the Chaplaincy Leaders’ Forum. It defended the methodology of the consultation, saying the College of Healthcare Chaplains was a valued partner committed to working with all faith communities.
Mr McManus hoped that NHS England would go back to the drawing board and rethink both the document and the consultation process, saying: “There are some parts of the new guidelines we really welcome, for example the emphasis on chaplains’ training and support. But we need clarity and a rethink on other areas.”
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