Serve patients, families, and care teams with calm presence, clear boundaries, and Scripture-rooted hope in end-of-life care settings.

Credit: 1 Module (12 Topics)
Quiz attempts: Two attempts per quiz
Deadline: 180 days from enrollment

Course Description

Hospice Chaplaincy Practice equips volunteer, part-time, and full-time chaplains to serve patients, families, and care teams with calm presence, clear boundaries, and Scripture-rooted hope. Designed for end-of-life care settings—including in-home hospice, long-term care facilities, hospitals, and inpatient hospice units—this course trains chaplains to offer compassionate, consent-based spiritual care in emotionally intense moments.

Emphasis is placed on dignity at the bedside, professional scope-of-practice, confidentiality with limits, policy alignment, and interdisciplinary team collaboration (RN/MD/SW/Aides/Volunteers). Chaplains will learn to recognize and respond to spiritual distress (fear, guilt, shame, anger at God, despair, unresolved relationships), offer gentle Scripture and prayer by permission, and support families through anticipatory grief, vigil, death, and bereavement.

This is training for chaplaincy practice; placement depends on local hospice policies, onboarding requirements, and approvals.

Program Fit

Team Lead and Presenter

Best Use

This course is especially useful for death or dying ministry, hospice chaplaincy, funeral or grief ministry, home hospice care, nursing facilities, hospitals, palliative care teams, and bereavement follow-up ministries.

Course Outcomes

This course will help you:

• Define the hospice chaplain role and practice “presence without pressure,” staying in your lane with clear scope-of-practice boundaries.
• Build trust at the bedside through calm presence, wise listening, and dignity-centered care.
• Apply ethics and confidentiality in hospice settings, including documentation norms and team communication expectations.
• Provide consent-based spiritual care (opt-in prayer, Scripture, and spiritual conversation) without coercion in pluralistic environments.
• Recognize and respond to spiritual distress (fear, anger, guilt, shame, isolation, meaning crisis) with compassion and clarity.
• Support families through anticipatory grief, conflict, and complicated dynamics without taking sides or triangulating.
• Serve well during the final hours with practical bedside wisdom, steady presence, and appropriate ritual support when requested.
• Practice bereavement and follow-up care with healthy boundaries, referral readiness, and a sustainable ministry rhythm.

Course Requirements

Grading Scale

Final Feedback Form

Your last requirement will be a feedback form to help us improve this course for future students. Please make note of any suggestions as you study.

Additional Links

Christian Leaders Institute  •  Christian Leaders Alliance