Pastoral care is available to all patients and their families, regardless of religious affiliation.  Chaplains and volunteer pastoral visitors represent a variety of faith traditions and are trained to respect and support the spirituality of each patient and family member. The director of pastoral care is board certified in clinical chaplaincy, and ensures that supportive pastoral services are offered with compassion and professionalism.

Patients may look to RWJ Hamilton’s pastoral care team members as skilled companions who can help:

• Ensure religious needs are met
• Provide emotional support in times of need
• Encourage life reflection and story telling
• Explore spiritual concerns
• Discover sources of hope
• Recover a sense of worth and dignity
• Mediate religious or ethical differences within a family
• Reconnect patients with valued friends and family
• Listen reverently
• Address strong feelings including anger, fear, sorrow, or remorse
• Make sense out of life's changes
• Strengthen life with prayer and meditation
• Process grief and loss
• Provide a safe space for doubt
• Intervene in crisis situations
• Consult on ethical dilemmas
• Reconcile feelings of guilt and regret
• Maintain contact with a faith community or clergy

For our Catholic patients, the sacrament of the anointing of the sick is administered by area priests as requested. Communion is provided by Extraordinary Ministers representing various local parishes, usually on a daily basis. Referrals for this sacramental care can be made through your nurse or by contacting the pastoral care office.

Contact Us
If you need pastoral assistance, please don't hesitate to ask a nurse or call the pastoral care office at extension 6980.  The director of pastoral care is available Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and a member of the pastoral care team is available to help every day of the week.  An on-call chaplain is available for pastoral emergencies around the clock and may be reached through the switchboard operator.

Multi-Faith Chapel
Our Multi-Faith Chapel is located on the first floor of the Outpatient Services Building. The chapel is always open for prayer and meditation.  Resources for devotional use, such as scriptures, prayer books, icons, prayer beads and rugs, and votive candles, are available in the chapel.