Prayer nurse gains support
As health chaplains called for new NHS guidelines over spiritual care, the Christian Medical Fellowship said Caroline Petrie's removal amounted to "religious discrimination".
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) also promised to back her disciplinary case.
Committed Christian Mrs Petrie, 45, faces disciplinary action after being accused of failing to show a commitment to equality and diversity. She could be sacked after asking an elderly patient if she wanted her to pray for her.
The patient, May Phippen, 79, was not upset or offended, but told another nurse she found it strange and it might be deemed upsetting or offensive by others.
The Rev Mark Stobert, vice-president of the College of Healthcare Chaplains, has called for clearer guidelines to help avoid a repeat of what happened to Mrs Petrie.
He said: "It can be argued there's a spiritual aspect to all types of care. We have been suggesting a more organised spiritual care framework is established in the NHS in England.
"Such a system exists in Scotland and Wales, and we would renew our calls for something similar to be set up here too. It would mean individuals would be clearer about what they can and cannot do."
Mrs Petrie, of Weston- super-Mare, North Somerset, is being supported by the RCN in the case which has been brought against her by the primary care trust for which she works as a £10-an-hour supply nurse.
The Christian Medical Fellowship's general secretary Peter Saunders said there were thousands of Christian healthcare workers and those of other faiths for whom prayer was a normal daily part of their lives.
He said: "Suspension simply for inquiring about the appropriateness of prayer is not only an act of religious discrimination but will undermine the proper provision of spiritual care in the NHS.
"Appropriate inquiries about patients' beliefs are an essential part of whole person care, without which a comprehensive plan of care is less achievable. A sensitive inquiry as to whether a patient would value prayer may well be an appropriate part of a medical consultation, especially in an NHS where some NHS trusts actually pay spiritual healers as part of the care team."
There were already national and local guidelines detailing the responsibility of NHS trusts to provide spiritual care, said Mr Saunders, who added: "The vast majority of people in Britain understand the offer to pray for a sick person as a personal expression of care and concern.
"This latest incident is sadly part of a growing trend of cases where health managers, who are either personally hostile to Christian faith and values or overly sensitive about issues of political correctness, are using 'equality and diversity policy' as a pretext for bullying and discriminating against NHS staff."
