Chaplain

Job description

Job responsibilities

To share in general visiting on the wards and departments to provide pastoral, spiritual and religious care to patients, relatives and staff of all faiths, beliefs and none.

To support the Manager when dealing with complex issues as they might arise within the chaplaincy and spiritual care team.

Conduct contract funerals.

Provide support for staff and schedule time for staff as service users. Assessing and respond to staff pastoral and spiritual needs (individual or collective).

To work sensitively and collaboratively with the patients own Priest/Minister/Faith Leader to meet the holistic pastoral needs of their parishioners.

Capability to deal with complex issues both systematically and creatively, make sound judgments, and take personal responsibility and initiative.

Workload prioritisation, time management and the capacity to incorporate new challenges, and to support managing projects.

Fluent and effective communicator in speech and writing.

Demonstrable communication skills to communicate with individuals in a variety of complex encounters.

Self-assured, friendly and professional approach to working with colleagues, the capability to work independently and collaboratively.

Participate in a range of cases supporting the manager to deliver effective pastoral and spiritual care.

Participate in reflective practice with a range of groups.

Capability to deal with persons requiring mental health wellbeing support and referral to the appropriate resources to aid management.

Communication with healthcare professionals in multidisciplinary discussions.

Communicating with patients and their families/carers in complex and often sensitive situations.

To assist in preparing and conducting services of public worship, to facilitate private prayer as appropriate and to administer religious rites appropriate to the person's faith group or belief and those of no belief.

To participate in the provision of 24hr chaplaincy on call cover, assist in team rosters and planning of team resources to provide chaplaincy and spiritual care support.

To support the chaplaincy and spiritual care team including volunteers in the performance of their duties, fostering productive and positive working relationships.

To build and maintain effective relationships with clinical teams and departments and wards within the trust.

Participate projects and operational groups as directed by the Chaplaincy & Spiritual Care Manager.

Contribute to internal education and training programmes and internal/external voluntary and healthcare groups.

Assist in introducing what healthcare chaplaincy is to another team/ service within WWL NHS FT.

Participate in Induction programmes for new trust staff.

Participate in education and training sessions as part of the trust education and training programmes.

Assist in preparing education and training materials for use by others to support the management of the chaplaincy provision to education and training.

Full time 37.5hrs

Ability to travel independently across Trust sites in accordance with organisation policies and service need.

Ability to attend an urgent on-call referral.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• Accreditation/ licensing with authority to practice as a religion or belief (including non-religious beliefs) leader/ representative and/or pastoral worker.
• Accredited training/qualification (normally degree level or higher) in theology, Chaplaincy& Spiritual Care, pastoral care or other relevant discipline.

Desirable

• Further counselling skills supported by appropriate training.

Experience

Essential

• oSubstantial, recent pastoral experience in local faith/belief community setting or equivalent
• oSignificant experience of healthcare chaplaincy OR of providing spiritual and pastoral care in a non-religious setting.
• oSufficient experience and understanding of spiritual, religious and pastoral care in the healthcare chaplaincy setting to advise colleagues on spiritual and religious care, and ethical and care issues
• oAwareness of professional and legal requirements relating to safe and effective practice working with service users and colleagues e.g. Safeguarding
• oAble to support and facilitate sacraments/rites and spiritual needs according to service user's own faith/belief group.

Desirable

• oExperience of collaborative working in a multi-faith/belief setting.
• oUnderstanding of current issues in the NHS.

Skills

Essential

• oGood communication skills to provide pastoral care to individuals in a variety of complex pastoral encounters e.g. traumatic events, breaking bad news.
• oAble to share and record information within the healthcare team.
• oExperience of working within data protection and information governance policies
• oAbility to work collaboratively in a team setting, with agreed protocols and procedures
• oExperience of providing education, training and supervision in a workplace setting.
• oAble to contribute to ethical discussion and support ethical reflection
• oAble to evaluate and incorporate relevant research findings into practice.
• oEffective in crisis work. e.g. responding appropriately to patients and relatives following traumatic injury or death, or in the event of a major incident.
• oExperience of reflection on professional and pastoral practice both individually and within a team
• oProficient in performance of administrative processes.eg. keeping accurate records. Computer literate and familiar with Microsoft Office (i.e.. Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint and Publisher and Access).
• oGood time management: Ability to prioritise conflicting tasks and demands, Ability to evidence autonomous working, Ability to manage a pastoral caseload
• oCar driver with current licence or ability to reach hospital sites within agreed response time frame when on-call, and travel between sites during working hours as service needs demand

Additional

Essential

• oAble to participate in the departmental on-call provision, including overnight on-call. Must be able to attend any of hospital sites in response to urgent callouts within 1 hour
• oCommitted to working collaboratively in ecumenical and multi-faith/belief team and setting
• oWork to maintain Chaplaincy Standards (NHS Chaplaincy Guidelines 2023: Promoting Excellence in Pastoral, Spiritual & Religious Care) and compliant with UK Board of Healthcare Chaplaincy Code of Conduct for Healthcare Chaplains 2014.
• oCommitted to continued personal and professional development and learning.

Desirable

• oEligible for registration with the UK Board of Healthcare Chaplains.

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Employer details

Employer name

Wrightington Wigan & Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Royal Albert Edward Infirmary

Wigan Lane

Wigan

WN1 2NN

Employer's website

http://www.wwl.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)