Hospital Chaplaincy

EDM number 2888 in 2005-06, proposed by Peter Luff on 31/10/2006.

That this House notes that the Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust has decided to make all but one of the chaplaincy team at the Worcestershire Royal, Alexander and Kidderminster General hospitals redundant and to stop payment to the part-time visiting chaplains; further notes the inadequate consultation with local faith representatives and members of the wider community before reaching this decision; welcomes the action of the Worcestershire division of the British Medical Association in deploring the decision and calling upon the trust to `restore the traditional chaplaincy services as a priority in the forthcoming reorganisation of clinical services'; considers that the action of the trust is contrary to the guidance provided by the Department of Health in NHS Chaplaincy: Meeting the religious and spiritual needs of patients and staff published in November 2003; is concerned that this unprecedented action could be emulated by other trusts seeking to curb deficits; reaffirms the vital role provided by chaplains of all faiths and denominations for both patients and staff; believes that chaplains have a crucial role in ensuring that patients are treated in a holistic fashion; calls upon the Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust to withdraw the proposals immediately and instead reduce chaplaincy services in line with cuts to the other clinical services at the three hospitals; and asks the Government to restate its support for chaplaincy services to reduce the likelihood of Worcestershire's example being emulated elsewhere.

This motion has been signed by a total of 26 MPs.