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Pastoral Care

Volunteer Program

The Pastoral Care Volunteer Program, offered by the Department of Pastoral Care at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, provides adjunct pastoral care to our patients and their families.

The Pastoral Care volunteer will be drawn from laity and clergy from surrounding communities in the Tristate Pastoral Care Volunteers will be given a ten-hour training orientation from the "Coordinator of Pastoral Care Volunteers."

Pastoral Care volunteers will also have to complete various segments of the volunteer orientation program conducted by the Cincinnati Children's Volunteer Services.

The process to become a Pastoral Care Volunteer includes the following:

  1. Completion of an application.

  2. Endorsement from applicant's faith group acknowledging him/her in good standing with the faith group.

  3. Ten hours of orientation.

  4. Completion of certain segments of Cincinnati Children's volunteer orientation.

  5. Final screening and selection by the coordinator of Pastoral Care Volunteers.

  6. Supervision by the coordinator of Pastoral Care Volunteers.

  7. Assignment to non-critical areas in the medical center at Cincinnati Children's.

Pastoral Care Volunteer Process

  • Completed Pastoral Care Volunteer application.

  • Successful Completion of three (3) orientation sessions.

  • Commitment to serve for one year (Recommend 2 – 4 hours a week; Monday – Saturday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.).

  • Letter of support from pastor or religious leader.

Pastoral Care Volunteer Guidelines

  • We recommend that volunteers do not come in a group but have their own schedules to do visitation. Please submit the schedule to the coordinator of Pastoral Care Volunteers (Chaplain Irv Moore) and make every effort to adhere to this schedule.
  • Spouses will not be assigned the same medical floor.
  • Cincinnati Children's employees may not serve as Pastoral Care volunteers.
  • Any prospective volunteer must be at least two years away from the death of his / her child and / or grandchild.
  • The coordinator of Pastoral Care Volunteers will provide all supervision. Continuing pastoral care education and training will be offered on a monthly basis with all Pastoral Care volunteers required to attend.
  • Volunteers may not  proselytize or distribute religious tracts.
  • Volunteers must comply with Cincinnati Children's Confidentiality Policy.

Successful Completion of Orientation

The coordinator of Pastoral Care volunteers will make the final approval for all volunteers.

All volunteers must take part in the orientation provided by  Volunteer Services. Volunteer Service orientation dates for 2002 are:

  • Sept. 17.

  • Oct. 16.

  • Nov. 12.

All sessions are from 5 a.m. - 8:30 pm. Sessions are in Location D.

All volunteers must  be cleared through the Department of Protective Services (including finger printing and background check). There is a $15 charge for photo identification badge.

All volunteers must be screened by Cincinnati Children's Employee Health Department, including taking a TB test.

All volunteers will be responsible for reporting their volunteer hours in a record book located in the main Pastoral Care offices. (These hours will then be submitted to the Volunteer Services office).

All Pastoral Care volunteers will submit a Pastoral Care Volunteer Record Card on all visits and turn these cards into the Pastoral Care office.

Irv Moore (irv.moore@chmcc.org), coordinator of Pastoral Care Volunteers, can be contacted at 513-636-8089, from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.

If a crisis arises with a patient or family member and the Pastoral Care Volunteer needs to consult with a chaplain, the on-call chaplain should be paged. This can be done inside Cincinnati Children's by dialing 1118-1101 and following the prompts. Outside of the hospital, dial 513-636-4200 and ask the hospital operator to page 1101.

Prospective floors for Pastoral Care Volunteers

Rehab  - E5 Rehab Transitional Care Center (TCC) 513-636-4664 (Rehab) 513-636-4459 (TCC)
 Rooms 591-595 (Rehab) 
 Rehab Overflow 580-582
 E5Medical / Surgical Rooms 571-583  (513-636-3684)

H3 East (Clinical Research Center)  513-636-4413
 Bedrooms 341-346

H5 West (Surgical / Orthopaedics, ENT) 513-636-4447
 Bedrooms 521-526
 Bedrooms 531-536

H5 East (Adolescent) 513-636-4437
 Bedrooms 541-547
 Bedrooms 551-557

H5 South (Cardiac) 513-636-4483
 Bedrooms 501-509
 Bedrooms 510-516

H6 South (Medicine) 513-636-4423
 Bedrooms 601-606
 Bedrooms 607-613

H6 East (Medicine) 636-4423
 Bedrooms 641-646
 Bedrooms 651-657 

Contact Pastoral Care