Job Summary:

Forrest General Hospital Chaplains provide non-sectarian, multi-denominational spiritual support to people of all faiths. Chaplains may be called upon to provide Pastoral Care visits to people with or without religious affiliations. Chaplains will provide the following types of service to persons of all faiths.

• Spiritual support to all patients and their family members upon request.
• Pastoral care, spiritual support/emotional support, crisis counseling, palliative care, end of life care, and bereavement support.
• Intervene when outside religious practices are not wanted or not in the best interest of the patient.
• Interpret hospital policies to visiting clergy and assist local clergy in their hospital ministry.

Performance Expectations:

Chaplains shall demonstrate the following traits:

• Openness, compassion, empathy and supportive behaviors to all faiths utilizing a non-proselytization, non-agenda approach to pastoral care and presence.
• To listen and communicate with, support and empathize with people from a diversity of spiritual beliefs.
• An ability to remain calm and to provide a pastoral presence that is compassionate and appropriate for the spiritual care of those enduring crises.
• A teachable spirit.
• Interact and function as part of the larger health care team.
• An ability to assess spiritual needs, develop spiritual follow-up plans and an ability to grasp clinical documentation requirements for the electronic record.
• Practice proper infection prevention.

Qualifications

The ideal candidate for the Chaplain position will demonstrate strong spiritual leadership, emotional intelligence, clinical sensitivity, and the ability to provide compassionate care within a diverse healthcare environment. Candidates must possess the ability to effectively minister to patients, families, staff, and interdisciplinary teams during times of crisis, grief, transition, and spiritual need.

Required Qualifications

• Minimum of eight (8) years of proven ministry experience in pastoral care, chaplaincy, counseling, or related spiritual leadership roles.
• Demonstrated experience providing spiritual care in clinical, congregational, hospice, behavioral health, or community-based settings.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills with the ability to engage individuals from diverse cultural, spiritual, and religious backgrounds.
• Ability to function effectively as part of an interdisciplinary healthcare team while maintaining professionalism, confidentiality, and ethical standards.
• Knowledge of crisis intervention, grief support, spiritual assessment, and emotional support practices.
• Ordained, licensed, or endorsed by a recognized faith-based organization or denomination, where applicable.
• Ability to provide compassionate spiritual support during trauma, end-of-life care, emergencies, and emotionally complex situations.
• Candidates who do not already possess Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) training will be required to complete a minimum of two (4) units of accredited Clinical Pastoral Education within two (2) years of hire as a condition of continued employment. Failure to meet this requirement within the designated timeframe may result in termination of employment.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master of Divinity (M.Div.) degree or higher from an accredited institution preferred.
• Master’s degree in Counseling, Social Work, Social Services, Marriage and Family Therapy, Psychology, or a related behavioral health field preferred.
• Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) training preferred.
• Previous healthcare chaplaincy or hospital ministry experience strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated leadership experience in ministry, pastoral care departments, or spiritual care services preferred.

Core Competencies

• Spiritual and emotional care
• Crisis response and de-escalation
• Compassionate listening and presence
• Interdisciplinary collaboration
• Ethical decision-making
• Cultural and spiritual sensitivity
• Documentation and professional communication
• Leadership and mentorship abilities

This position requires a servant leader who can provide hope, spiritual guidance, emotional support, and compassionate care while upholding the mission, values, and standards of the organization.

Skills:

• Competency using EPIC for clinical documentation, as well as MS Outlook, Word, and Excel for supportive tasks.
• Social skills to meet new people quickly.

Mental Demands:

• Must be able to simultaneously cope with all types of emotionally and spiritually difficult and stressful scenarios.
• Must be able to serve and empathize with difficult people in difficult and crisis moments and then quickly adjust to the next person’s situation.