A chaplain adapts to a lack of embrace

Hospital chaplain Camille Turner says the pandemic has taken away one of her most important tools of the trade: physical touch. Here's how she's adapting to the new normal.

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Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, Penn Medicine Chaplain Camille Turner has to call her patients to provide comfort, rather than meeting them at their bedsides. (Provided by Camille Turner)

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, Penn Medicine Chaplain Camille Turner has to call her patients to provide comfort, rather than meeting them at their bedsides. (Provided by Camille Turner)

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Hospital chaplain Camille Turner says the pandemic has taken away one of her most important tools of the trade: physical touch. Early on, her instinct to hug just proved too strong. But now, she’s tapping into something she calls “creative resilience” to find new ways to comfort her patients — even if it’s as simple as singing a song.

Guest: Camille Turner, Chaplain at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania

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