Spiritual and Existential Support in Hospitals – Conversation Partners

WIM hereby wishes to promote the following initiative:

Patients and their next of kin now have a unique opportunity to engage in important conversations about existential questions with a representative from their own faith or life stance community during a vulnerable situation at the hospital.

Currently, spiritual and existential care in Norwegian hospitals is primarily arranged for members of the Church of Norway through the hospital chaplaincy scheme. Although hospital chaplains can, in principle, serve everyone, some may find it problematic to receive spiritual or existential care from someone who does not represent their life stance or faith. To safeguard fundamental human rights and patient rights related to the practice of faith and life stance, Oslo University Hospital (OUS), in collaboration with the Council for Religious and Life Stance Communities (STL), has established a pilot project on spiritual and existential care for all patients and their next of kin.

The resource team consists of 20 individuals from a total of 12 faith and life stance communities. They have participated in a tailor-made continuing education program at the Faculty of Theology at the University of Oslo. They are quality-assured and selected based on maturity and ability to communicate with others. Some of the conversation partners, depending on their role in their own faith community, will also be able to perform religious rituals for patients at the hospital if needed. Since January 2012, conversation partners have been available to patients and next of kin who wish to speak with someone from their own faith or life stance community. A welcome effect of the project is that hospitals outside OUS have also requested, and in some cases utilized, our conversation partners.

What is a conversation partner?

A conversation partner is an individual who belongs to a faith or life stance community other than the Church of Norway. He or she has undergone practical conversation training with individuals in critical situations through a continuing education course. The conversation partner will listen, dedicate time, and be present for you. If you require guidance or assistance with reflection, the conversation partner will endeavor to help you. A conversation partner is bound by confidentiality and will not disclose any information from the conversation.

It is important that both patients and their next of kin are made aware that members of faith and life stance minorities now have an offering at the hospital.

OUS has also prepared a patient brochure, which provides information about the service and how to utilize it. The brochure includes an overview of the faith and life stance communities represented in the resource team.

The information can be downloaded from the website of the Section for Equal Healthcare Services: