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Chaplain vs hospice chaplain

The differences between chaplains and hospice chaplains can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a chaplain and a hospice chaplain. Additionally, a hospice chaplain has an average salary of $52,027, which is higher than the $46,392 average annual salary of a chaplain.

The top three skills for a chaplain include patients, social work and clinical pastoral. The most important skills for a hospice chaplain are patients, home health, and clinical pastoral.

Chaplain vs hospice chaplain overview

ChaplainHospice Chaplain
Yearly salary$46,392$52,027
Hourly rate$22.30$25.01
Growth rate-4%
Number of jobs2,6009,571
Job satisfaction-4.5
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 48%Master's Degree, 42%
Average age5151
Years of experience44

What does a chaplain do?

The word chaplain is originally referred to as representatives of the Christian faith. In tradition, a chaplain is a cleric or formal leader with an established religion or any non-ordained members of religious institutes. Chaplains now are diverse in terms of faith and often serve various constituencies. Chaplains are professionally trained and certified to provide spiritual guidance in a clinical setting to individuals who has issues with meaning, hope, and transcendence or any specific life circumstances it may be. They offer reflective listening and non-judgmental emotional and inner comfort in various settings, including the military, parishes, hospitals, prisons, universities, and schools.

What does a hospice chaplain do?

A Hospice Chaplain provides care and comfort to patients nearing the end of life because of terminal illnesses. They collaborate with the community and the care team to ensure that care is in accord with the patient's faith.

Chaplain vs hospice chaplain salary

Chaplains and hospice chaplains have different pay scales, as shown below.

ChaplainHospice Chaplain
Average salary$46,392$52,027
Salary rangeBetween $25,000 And $83,000Between $35,000 And $76,000
Highest paying CitySan Jose, CA-
Highest paying stateCalifornia-
Best paying companyUofL Hospital-
Best paying industryHealth Care-

Differences between chaplain and hospice chaplain education

There are a few differences between a chaplain and a hospice chaplain in terms of educational background:

ChaplainHospice Chaplain
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 48%Master's Degree, 42%
Most common majorTheologyTheology
Most common collegeEmory UniversityEmory University

Chaplain vs hospice chaplain demographics

Here are the differences between chaplains' and hospice chaplains' demographics:

ChaplainHospice Chaplain
Average age5151
Gender ratioMale, 68.3% Female, 31.7%Male, 66.6% Female, 33.4%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 11.8% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 9.0% Asian, 6.6% White, 68.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 9.1% Asian, 6.7% White, 67.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage16%16%

Differences between chaplain and hospice chaplain duties and responsibilities

Chaplain example responsibilities.

  • Provide full pastoral ministry, visitation and counseling to inmates and incarcerate patients.
  • Participate as members of a psychiatric or rehabilitation team in staff conferences concerning patients and inmates.
  • Perform functions in field and combat environments, combat lifesaver tasks and apply communication skills in crisis/potential suicide intervention.
  • Visit patients/families identify as appropriate for pastoral services and provide direct spiritual counseling, prayer, and ministry as appropriate.
  • Certify in ASIST (suicideprevention )
  • Participate in bi-weekly IDG meetings as part of IDG team.
  • Show more

Hospice chaplain example responsibilities.

  • Provide direct spiritual and emotional support to patients and families depending on their individual spiritual beliefs.
  • Serve on CPE accreditation committee.
  • Work with clinical staff as part of the IDT team.
  • Provide direct supervision and training to CPE students in both a hospital setting and home care setting.
  • Maintain compliance in all documentation per Medicare guidelines.
  • Minister to the correctional facility staff through prayer and encouragement.
  • Show more

Chaplain vs hospice chaplain skills

Common chaplain skills
  • Patients, 21%
  • Social Work, 11%
  • Clinical Pastoral, 10%
  • Spiritual Care, 8%
  • Pastoral Care, 7%
  • Patient Care, 5%
Common hospice chaplain skills
  • Patients, 31%
  • Home Health, 15%
  • Clinical Pastoral, 10%
  • Patient Care, 8%
  • Pastoral Care, 5%
  • Spiritual Care, 4%

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