Pastoral Care

University of Missouri Health Care recognizes the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of patients and their families. During crises or major life changes, a person's sense of spirituality and belief system often come into focus. For this reason, UMHC employs chaplains to address religious and/or spiritual concerns that may arise.

Chaplains are clinically trained ministers who work as part of the health care team. They specialize in providing interdenominational pastoral support services to patients, families and staff. The services include:

Spiritual Assessments
Traditional religious functions such as prayer and sacraments
Personal visitation
Pastoral/spiritual guidance and grief counseling
Crisis intervention
Assistance in acquiring support services from ones own tradition or faith
Help with exploring the new meaning/ hope in crises and life changes
Serve as liaison between patient/family and hospital staff and with community/local clergy

The Pastoral Care department is available to provide spiritual care in a nonsectarian fashion to any patient or family who desires its services. Chaplains can initiate visits, patients may request visits, or staff members may make referrals. The chaplain may be called for a crisis such as impending death and other types of grief evoking situations, preoperative visits, patients in emotional or religious/spiritual crises, and ethical dilemmas. Chaplains may also be consulted in situations that are not necessarily considered crises. Some patients and families desire visits simply because they are ill and their own pastor cannot be present. Others do not have pastors, but being in the hospital setting brings them to a position to reevaluate their values and beliefs.

Pastoral Care is a self managed department with Jean Howell, RN, Manager of Staffing Support Services, serving as its immediate administrator.

The UMHC Staff Chaplains can be reached at the Pastoral Care Office at (573)882-2236.