An essential handbook for bedside ministry, and for providing meaningful and enriching comfort to the sick and dying.

Bringing comfort and concern to the seriously ill or injured is a challenge for lay people and clergy alike. In this practical guide, Neville Kirkwood shares wisdom gained from years of experience as a hospital chaplain–on the art of hospital visitation. This classic handbook, now updated, contains all the tools needed to address a variety of concerns:

* Considering the privacy of the patient, and of friends and relatives
* Realizing the time and place for prayer
* Avoiding the pitfalls of bedside ministry
* Imparting feelings of empathy and awareness
* Handling depression, suffering, and despair
* Understanding the non-verbal communications of the patient
* Accepting when your services are not welcome
* Acknowledging your own motivations

Featuring additional sections addressed to clergy and trained lay pastoral workers, as well as those designed for lay volunteers, as well as a variety of exercises and prayers for specific circumstances, this is a "must-have resource for all who work with the sick and dying" (South Dakota Church News).