BBC Radio talks to Church Army's hospital chaplain

24 Apr 2009

This week BBC Radio 4's Today programme aired an interview with Church Army's Phaedra Pamphilon-Green, who is a chaplain at Homerton Hospital in London.

Following the National Secular Society's call for the NHS hospital chaplaincy service to be scrapped, BBC reporter Angus Stickler spent a day at the hospital to see just how valuable this multi-faith scheme is to the dying and the bereaved.

In the resulting interview, Phaedra explained how she and other chaplains are there to comfort and support patients and their families, allowing nursing staff to continue with their many medical duties.

Both the Ward Sister and Mortuary Officer praised Phaedra's huge contribution to the hospital, with the latter describing the chaplaincy scheme as "a service to the bereaved that's second to none".

One patient in constant pain spoke of Phaedra and the chaplains as "amazing", and that it was their work "that gives me hope". The most poignant part of the interview came when Phaedra spoke of how she shares the burden of grief with parents who have lost a child. She also holds funeral services for babies who have died at the hospital, describing what their parents have had to endure as "painful beyond words".

You can listen to the full interview at Radio 4 Today, or click on this link for a slideshow which also features an abridged version of the interview.