Community Clergy
Welcome to our department!
We want to thank you for your ministry in the lives of the individuals and families you serve in your parish. Extending your care to them while they are hospitalized is very important. UNC Health Care values pastoral and spiritual care as significant elements of the healing process and appreciate you joining us in our work.
As colleagues in ministry, we want your comings and goings from the hospital to be as convenient as possible and we want to be available to help you in whatever manner you need. Please feel free to call us at any time with questions about how to navigate the hospital system. We may also call on you for help with specific faith tradition or denominational requests.
> Read MoreFinding Patients and Patient Confidentiality
You may get room numbers of patients in your congregation at the Information Desk in the main lobby. If a patient can’t be located or information can’t be given out for privacy reasons, please contact us the Chaplains' Office at 919.966.4021 or page the on-call chaplain.
You may also use the religious census to help locate patients. (Note that patients may decline to have their name listed in the census.) The religious census is available in [??]. You must have a clergy ID badge to view the census (See information listed under “Identification Badges” below on how to obtain a badge.).
The rules regarding confidentiality in the hospital are a result of HIPAA (Health Information Portability and Accountability Act, 2003) legislation and regulations. HIPAA sets legal limits on the information that we can provide to you about patients in order to protect their privacy.
We want to encourage you to continue to maintain your parishioners' privacy and confidentiality. Please obtain your parishioner's or member's permission as to what should or should not be shared with others regarding his/her hospitalization. We suggest you get your member's permission to tell others that he/she is in the hospital. Also, ask your member what he/she wants you to share with the congregation when honoring prayer requests. It is best not to share details about diagnosis, treatment plans, or prognosis. We hope that you find this information helpful as we partner with you in the pastoral/spiritual care of your congregants.
As hospital chaplains, we have a responsibility to protect the privacy of those to whom we provide pastoral/spiritual care. We are happy to follow-up on requests to visit your hospitalized members. Please be mindful, however, that we cannot give you any information about your member's medical condition or related matters.
We appreciate your sensitivity in these matters. Please feel free to contact us to make referrals or with any questions or concerns you may have regarding clergy/lay hospital visitation
Visitation Procedures
We encourage community clergy and pastoral visitors to visit patients from their own religious congregations. Patients outside of your congregation may be visited at the request of the patient, members of the patient’s immediate family or the patient’s guardian. Under no circumstances is a patient or family to be visited unsolicited. This is a serious violation of one’s personal privacy as well as a disrespect of the religious beliefs they may or may not hold.
Identification Badges
All visiting clergy and authorized pastoral visitors are required to wear a Clergy ID Badge issued by UNC Healthcare. You may register for a badge at the Department of Pastoral Care, Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Badges expire and need to be renewed after (one or two) years.
Under current policy, clergy must apply in person for a badge and present proof of ordination/licensure and employment in a congregation. Pastoral visitors must provide personal identification and proof or authorization for their ministry. Currently, all visiting clergy and pastoral visitors must pay a one-time fee of $5 to have a Clergy ID badge issued. Clergy ID badges are a privilege provided to visiting clergy that offers free parking. Please note: Clergy ID badges are for use in visiting members of your congregation and are not to be used for personal or family visits.
In the near future, the Clergy ID badge policy will be changing at UNC Healthcare. Due to HIPPA regulations, rising costs and problems in tracking clergy ID badges over time, the Healthcare system and the Department of Pastoral Care will be switching to a clergy ID badge system that requires annual renewal. This will not happen suddenly, and we are still in the approval stages. The application will be available online to download and bring to Pastoral Care. Since the UNC Health Care Parking Office says the cost of issuing a Clergy ID badges is actually $10, there will be, unfortunately, an increase in fees. Please stay tuned for more information on this change.
Visiting Hours and After-Hour Visits
Regular visiting hours are 8:00 AM to 9:00 PM, daily. However, visiting clergy and pastoral visitors are not generally bound by normal visiting hours, especially in times of crisis; however, they must arrange their visits according to the convenience of the patient, and the medical and clinical staff. The Information Desk staff will assist visiting clergy and pastoral visitors in finding their patient, provided they have their UNC Healthcare Visiting Clergy ID badge.
Outside of normal visiting hours (in other words, for visits between 9:00PM and 8:00AM, daily), all visiting clergy and pastoral visitors must enter through the Emergency Department. The Emergency Department security officer or Patient and Guest Services supervisor will help you find the patient, provided you have your ID badge. If you forget your badge or don’t have one, we may issue a temporary visitor's badge.
If Hospital Security or the pastoral visitor has questions, special needs or concerns, the chaplain on-call will be paged to assist.
Tracts and Sacred Literature
You may use appropriate religious literature when ministering to your parishioners or others who have requested your services. General distribution of tracts and other religious literature in the hospital is not permitted. Leaving tracts in waiting rooms, lobbies, bathrooms, the hospital chapel and other public areas is not permitted. Devotional and sacred literature is available from the Chaplains' Office.
Parking Information
Visiting clergy and pastoral visitors should use the Dogwood Parking Deck. You must show your ID badge to the parking attendant along with your ticket when exiting the deck. The parking office tracks use of clergy ID' for parking, and parking fees are paid by the Department of Pastoral Care.
Chapel Locations
With the hopes to offer sacred spaces that are convenient for patients, families, and staff throughout the hospital, we have various chapels locations. The John M. Reeves All-Faiths Chapel, the main chapel, is located on the first floor of NC Memorial Hospital, just past the Department of Pastoral Care office. The Children’s Chapel is located on the ground floor of NC Memorial Hospital, just past the main information desk center and the Cranberry Corner gift shop, as you are walking toward the NC Children’s Hospital. There is a small Burn Chapel located just outside of the NC Jaycee Burn Center, which is on the fourth floor of NC Memorial Hospital. And, most recently, with the opening of the new NC Cancer Center, there is a Chapel and Meditation Room, both of which are located on the ground floor of the Cancer Center, just past the Resource Information Center. With questions about the locations of any of these chapels, please ask at any of the Information Desk centers.