WHY ARE CHAPLAINS IMPORTANT TO END-OF-LIFE CARE?

Hospice care is a type of health care that focuses on controlling a terminally ill patient's pain and symptoms and attending to their emotional and spiritual needs at the end of life. Hospice care provides comfort and quality of life by decreasing pain and suffering. However, pain and suffering are also manifestations of emotional, psychological, and spiritual pain.

The care team's job, the nurse, social worker, and chaplain, are to assess each case and find the best way to keep the patient comfortable.

As a chaplain, when I visit with patients, I provide active listening and a caring presence, and I open my eyes and examine the patients' and their family's body language. Minor signs of distress are identifiable by rubbing the neck, furled eyebrows, excessive blinking, and other micro expressions not usually seen by the untrained eye. At times the patient and family members are not even aware of their distress either because of denial or exhaustion.

In many cases, since the patient needs to sign a DNR (Do not resuscitate) order, they have already wrestled with their mortality and have a sense of acceptance. However, when the family has to sign a DNR for their loved one, they carry a lot of guilt and grief for what they feel is signing away the life of their family member or friend. In these situations, the chaplain steps in to iron out all the wrinkles and help bring solace and closure to the family.

In conclusion, chaplains are essential to end-of-life care so the family can grieve effectively and heal properly. The guidance of a trained chaplain can make a difference for grieving family members and empower them to go out and rejoin society.