Archpriest Sergiy Filimonov, Doctor of Medicine, Doctor of Theology

Chairman of Saint-Petersburg Society of Orthodox DoctorsRUSSIA

«Organizational forms of medical-social institutions of the Russian Orthodox Church

and Orthodox public organizations»

Eparchy hospitals – patient care institutions of the ROC, where minimal nursing and specialized therapeutic care is provided to retired clergy of eparchy of declining years and also to parishioners of Orthodox churches on the basis of spiritual father’s written motion.

Task of hospitals in central subordination of Moscow Patriarchate – is providing specialized medical care to clergy of Patriarchate and to the poor.

Monastery hospitals – medical institutions of the ROC, situated on monastery territory, intended for general medical assistance and some types of qualified medical assistance to monks, monastery workers and pilgrims.

Sick quarter at theological schools (academies and seminaries) –are patient care institutions of the ROC, where medical assistance is provided to theological school students.

Aid posts of theological schools – ambulatory medical institutions of the ROC, intended for first medical aid and first doctor’s assistance to theological school students – they are organized by theological seminaries that can’t afford maintenance of sick quarter.

Spiritual care centers (SCC) – ambulatory medical institutions of the ROC, intended for consultations and ambulatory rehabilitation of mentally diseased, alcohol and drug addicted persons, victims oftotalitarian sects, extrasensory individuals, occultists. On the basis of spiritual care center diagnostics of somatic diseases can be conducted followed by referral to suitable patient care institutions. In spiritual care center Orthodox priests and doctors are closely cooperating.

Monastery and parish hospices – non-specialized medical-social institutions of the ROC, intended for general care (nursery, brotherly) after aged and infirm monks (nuns) and parishioners till their death.

Monastery and parish orphanages, private orphanages with the care of church – institutions of the ROC, intended mainly for receiving, maintenance and upbringing children-orphans.

Communities of permanent residence for drug and alcohol addicted persons’ rehabilitation – in-patient institutions of the ROC, representing community of closed-cycle monastery type with autonomous subsistence. As a rule, such communities have own church, refectory, workshops, farm-yard, vegetable garden, equipment, houses for living and social needs; they completely provide themselves, are subject to strict Rules, regulating spiritual and medical rehabilitation of patients through constant prayer and labor.

Monasteries with active medical-social work – are institutions of the ROC, providing medical and social assistance to inhabitants of the territory adjacent to the cloister and the nearest built-up areas.

Houses of mercy and cloisters of mercy (parish or monastery type) – multifield institutions of the ROC, fulfilling church, social and medical tasks and depending on this having in its structure institutions of different type. Complex institutions of the ROC can have two directions: a) providing all medical-social and medical activity on its territory or b) conducting this activity by nurses in different state and private institutions outside of the cloister. In such case the dwelling place is only the place of residence and prayer of nurses and doesn’t have the status of a monastery.

– Christening of patient in a hospital, christening in the face offear of death, solving pf puzzling issues during christening patients; – Special features of administering confession to patents and solving of puzzling issues during conducting sacrament of confession among different groups of patents; – Special feature of administering the Sacrament to patients suffering from different illnesses; special features of administering the Sacrament in in-patent departments, in wards, in different departments and in domestic hospital church, solving of puzzlingissues during administering the Sacrament in a hospital; – Different variants of administering extreme unction to patients depending on their physical state; solving pf puzzling issues during extreme unction; – Special features of wedding and funeral in a hospital; – Special features of pastoral soul care in surgery, therapeutics,resuscitation, obstetrics and gynecology, pediatrics, psychiatry, of AIDS-infected, alcohol addicted, etc.