Community Hospital of Los Gatos believes that total patient care involves attention to the spiritual, as well as the physical and emotional needs of each patient.  Pastoral services are available to assist you and your priest, minister or rabbi is welcome to visit you while you are here.   Chaplain Services at Community Hospital of Los Gatos provides pastoral, spiritual, and emotional support to patients and their families, and recognizes chaplain services as a key part of healthcare for the overall well being for each patient and family member.

During an inpatient’s hospital stay, a Chaplain or pastoral care representative can meets with inpatients to offer spiritual, and emotional support, with attention to the individual’s own convictions and beliefs. A Chaplain is also available for patients and family members, on request through the patient’s nurse or by dialing the hospital operator.
 
Some of the services Chaplains provide are to:

• Assisting patients and families in relieving anxieties associated with illness, treatment, and the recovery process.
• Praying with and for patients, celebrating rituals for healing, administering sacraments, and providing pastoral counseling.
• Contacting the patient’s pastor, rabbi, or spiritual community upon request.
• Offering crisis intervention and referrals to other services in the hospital and the general community for further assistance.
• Helping patients face death, and providing both counsel and grief support to relatives and friends.

Chaplains are professionals and a recognized part of the hospital’s health care team.  Both ordained and lay chaplains are specially trained in health care ministry and are certified by professional associations such as the American Association of Pastoral Counseling and the National Association of Catholic Chaplains. Their expertise in current theological and bioethical issues helps counsel patients and family members facing difficult decisions, such as timing and levels of life support or the wish to decline cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Upon request, a Chaplain may provide resource materials such as spiritual books and other literature that can assist in coping with illness, trauma, or loss.

For more information please call 408.378.6131