“Please pray for me” 

One of my patients recently asked me at the end of our visit, “Please pray for me.” We’d known each other for several years and had talked about our faith before; but this was the first time she’d said this. The patient had been chronically ill, a longtime survivor of cancer, with frequent hospitalizations despite the best efforts of her primary care physician (me), her cancer team, and other healthcare professionals.  

I’m glad she felt comfortable asking me to pray for her. In hindsight, my response, “Yes, I’ll be praying for you,” may have been the most helpful thing I gave her that day.  

In the medical profession, we often think we should keep our personal lives, including faith, out of conversations with patients. Of course, there are appropriate boundaries we should observe. However, in our work as healers, being prepared for emotional or spiritual requests may be one of the greatest gifts we can offer patients. This is perhaps especially true when there are limited medical treatments available. Being ready to respond when patients express an emotional or spiritual need can be an important part of the care we give to patients.  

Learning about an individual’s social network, including family, friends, and spiritual or other community, may help us to know how to best support the patient. Whether prayer is what you can offer based on your faith or spiritual background, being ready to respond when patients express such a need can be an important part of the care we give. 

This piece expresses the views solely of the author. It does not necessarily represent the views of any organization, including Johns Hopkins Medicine.