Principle 4
The Needs of Patients and Families

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Right to Spiritual Care

Chaplains and Pastoral Care Workers engage with patients, their families and staff on the understanding that every person has a right to spiritual care and must be treated with respect and dignity at all times.

Healthcare exists at the juncture of human suffering and spiritual searching.

It attends to people when they are suffering, recognising that a time of suffering is often when people re-evaluate their lifestyle and ask significant questions about what is ultimate and how it is to be included at this moment.

Needs Based

The primary focus of Chaplaincy and Pastoral Care is the needs of patients, families and staff for spiritual care.

Active proselytising is not a function of Chaplaincy and Pastoral Care Services.

The most basic needs of patients and their families in hospitals and healthcare institutions are no different from those people outside such an institution. They include both physical and spiritual needs.