Spiritual support
We have a large team of chaplains at our hospitals, and their message is simple; if you think they can help – call them today.
How to contact the chaplaincy team
Chaplains are available 24 hours a day in both our hospitals. You can contact a chaplain either:
- By asking a member of staff on a ward or in a department
- By contacting the main reception
- By calling the switchboard
- By calling the chaplaincy service at:
- University Hospital Lewisham on: 020 8333 3299
- Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Woolwich on: 0208 836 6831
- For patient referrals or any urgent matters, please email; lg.chaplaincyuhl@nhs.net
Spiritual spaces in our hospitals
Chapel and prayer room at University Hospital Lewisham
The Chapel and Prayer Room at University Hospital Lewisham is located on the ground floor of Waterloo Block. It is signposted on the Waterloo block entrances next to the taxi/drop off and collection point. It is available to use from first thing in the morning until into the evening. It is a multi-faith (and no faith) room in which you will find prayer mats, books and pamphlets that will hopefully be useful to you.
Chapel and prayer room at Queen Elizabeth Hospital
Queen Elizabeth Hospital has a chapel and prayer room on the ground floor, to the left of the main entrance. Like 'The Quiet Place', it is a multi-faith (and no faith) room. It is available from first thing in the morning until into the evening. You will find prayer mats, books and pamphlets that will hopefully be useful to you.
What can the chaplaincy team do for you?
It may seem at first to be a rather odd suggestion. You might well ask, what on earth can the chaplaincy do for me?
Good question.
The answer is that the NHS is committed to what is known as holistic care; that is, the care of thewhole person.
Most obviously, hospitals deal with physical needs such as mending a broken leg or repairing a dodgy heart valve.
However, staff also try to address mental needs such as the stress that can come with treatment or the strain that can come from modern life.
Part of that strain might come from how we live or where we live.
These different aspects of being a whole person are vitally important.
But, if we are really going to care for the whole person, other aspects have to be considered too.
We have to take into account our emotional wellbeing, our spiritual wellbeing and our religious wellbeing – even if our understanding of religion does not neatly pop us into a convenient pigeon hole.
A broken leg will not only hurt physically, it will hurt emotionally – especially if it is the most recent of a series of unexpected incidents.
A dodgy heart valve will, almost certainly, affect us emotionally. We might think that we are in a more difficult place than we actually are.
Emotional stress can lead quickly to spiritualstress, when we start to question our understanding of what life is and what life is about. Our sense of self-worth, our dignity and our values can all be undermined. All of this can be made worse by the sense of isolation that many people experience when there are admitted to a hospital.
And, for the person used to going to a church, a mosque, a synagogue or a temple, that broken leg or dodgy heart valve is most certainly going to disrupt their pattern of life – even if only for a short time.
The chaplaincy might not be of much help in mending the leg or replacing the heart valve but it can help with all of the other aspects of illness.
Why? Because chaplains are paid to give their time, to listen and to be there when things have to said or – just as often – when things can’t be said because there are no words. And that is not just at sad and difficult times – it's also for wonderfully joyful times such as the birth of a longed-for baby.
The members of the chaplaincy represent most of the major religions and we are pretty good at listening to folk who have no religion or whose faith is a bit rusty.
We are here to help everybody… patients, families, carers and staff alike.
So… if you think we can help, call us. Or, at least, ask a member of staff to call us.
You never know, we might be able to help!