Pastoral Care

Day Kimball Hospital provides highly personalized pastoral care, spiritual support, and religious services through the hospital employed chaplains, the Reverend Virginia Army and the Reverend Jonathan Scott, as well as other volunteer chaplains.

Pastoral care such as communion, prayer and the laying on of hands is provided in a respectful, individualized manner to meet each patient’s unique spiritual needs and desires, faith, religious background and preference, and ongoing pastoral relationship with local clergy and congregations.

The hospital’s Pastoral Care Department visits inpatients on a regular basis. Each Day Kimball Hospital patient receives a pastoral visit nearly every day. These visits include, depending on the needs of the patient and his or her family and friends, the laying on of hands, prayer, the sacraments, attentive listening and pastoral counseling. The department chaplains provide bereavement counseling and support for patients, families and caregivers including end of life issues. These caring and compassionate individuals also assist people in making difficult decisions regarding choices for end-of-life care. The chaplains can also provide emergency Roman Catholic sacramental coverage.

The Pastoral Care Department is very active in community education regarding advance directives, living wills and organ donation. Members of the department help patients and their families to understand these important documents, and to make an informed decisions. Individuals wishing assistance in completing an advance directive should call the department at (860) 963-6344.

The department’s chaplains also visit hospice patients in need of spiritual guidance in their homes. These visits help patients who have become isolated from their congregation or clergy to get “reconnected.”

A guest room is available for patients, their families and friends use on the hospital’s main floor, across the hall from the Women’s Board Gift Shop and the Mary Gulden Private Dining Room.

Day Kimball Hospital’s Pastoral Care Department is overseen by The Spiritual Care Advisory Committee, a group of local clergy and community members who have been instrumental in establishing a comprehensive pastoral care program at the hospital.

Services Provided

Daily hospital rounds for patients, their families, and friends.
Administration of Sacraments
Patient and community education regarding Advanced Directives, Living Wills, and Organ Donation.
Volunteers call local parishes and congregations, with the patients’ permission, so that congregations and clergy are alerted that a hospitalization has occurred.
Support for Hospice patients and their families.
Prayer & pastoral counseling; bereavement counseling.
The Chaplains serve on the Ethics Committee.
Crisis debriefing.
Memorial/Funeral and Baptismal services for unaffiliated persons.
Quiet Room available for prayer and reflection.
Chaplains also are occasionally called upon to baptize critically ill infants before they are transferred to major medical centers.
The department’s chaplains partner with local churches and congregations to train, deploy, and support lay pastoral visitors and parish nurses.
Pastoral Care Services are available 24 hours a day, 7days a week, 365 days a year. To arrange for a chaplain's visit, or to see a priest, rabbi, or minister of your own choosing, please call 860-963-6344. Services are also available to all staff members of Day Kimball Healthcare.

What to expect during your visit/procedure

The hospital’s chaplains make every attempt to visit every patient every day.

Patient’s specific spiritual needs and desires, faith, religious background and preference, and ongoing pastoral relationship with local clergy and congregations are respected.

If a patient does not have an advance directive or living will and wishes to create one, the Pastoral Care Department can assist him or her to fill one out free of charge.

Download the Pastoral Care brochure

Contact Information

Phone: (860) 963-6344 or
(860) 774-3366, ext. 2644
Fax: 860-928-9758
e-mail: Rev. Virginia W.G. Army
varmy@daykimball.org or
Rev. Jonathan E. Scott
jscott@daykimball.org

Location

Third floor,
Day Kimball Hospital,
320 Pomfret Street, Putnam, CT

Directions

Enter the hospital through the main Visitors Entrance. Take Elevator B, located across the hall from the Pharmacy, to the third floor. Take a right off of the elevator. The Pastoral Care and Volunteer Services Department will be on your left hand side.

Directions to DKH

Hours

Weekdays: 8:00am – 5:00pm

Emergency coverage 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. If a patient needs spiritual or pastoral assistance, there is always a chaplain available to come in and be present in that time of grief and loss

Physicians/Team members

The Rev. Virginia W.G. Army
The Rev. Jonathan E. Scott
The Rev. David Carter, Volunteer Chaplain
The Rev. Nancy Morrow, Volunteer Chaplain
The Rev. Tom Meyer, Volunteer and Per Diem Chaplain

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Day Kimball Hospital
320 Pomfret Street (Route 44)
Putnam, Connecticut 06260
Phone: (860) 928-6541 or (860) 774-3366
TTY: (860) 963-6422