Alabama Chaplains Embrace Those Suffering from COVID

Curious about what a hospital chaplain does, especially a Pagan one like me? This great article provides good detail, especially in the time of COVID precautions. However, the hospital where I work, CaroMont Regional, does give us the freedom to go into COVID patient rooms if we wish as long as we were our PPE and follow other precautions. We have the option of calling the patient's room, but the reality is that doesn't work well because many COVID patients are on oxygen or intubated and either can't talk at all or struggle to be heard over the whoosing of oxygen masks. And some COVID patients are hearing-impaired and can't her us very well. So I prefer to go inside and get as close as I'm able while being safe. Fortunately, my PPE and the other precautions like hand-washing have kept me healthy.

The article doesn't talk about Pagan chaplains but rather it illustrates the interfaith approach all professional chaplains take, which includes caring for those with no religious practice at all. The writer, Charlotte Huff, did an excellent job giving details about what chaplains do. (It isn't all prayer and Jesus. I'm a Pagan, after all!) But I'm doubly excited about the article because Charlotte and I worked together for several years on an American Cancer Society donor magazine, and I'm happy to see she's still cranking out great work, just like she once did for me.