The Catholic Archbishop of Birmingham, the Most Rev Vincent Nichols, has condemned the decision by a health trust Tuesday to axe all but one of its hospital chaplains.
Two Anglican chaplains, three Roman Catholics and one more from the Free Church now face the axe by Worcestershire Acute Hospitals Trust under the plans.
The decision is a bid to cut back costs at a time when the NHS faces severe financial difficulties and is expected to save the trust around £100,000.
Amicus Trade Union said in early August – when the plans were first announced – that the loss of the chaplains would leave terminally ill patients at hospitals in Worcester, Kidderminster and Redditch without spiritual support.
Archbishop Nichols is now working closely with the Anglican Bishop of Worcester, the Rt Rev Peter Selby, to convince the trust to reverse its decision on the job axes, the Birmingham Mail reported.
In a letter to John Rostill, the chief executive of the trust, Archbishop Nichols laid out a number of concerns.
He stated: “For Catholics, access to the ministry of the Church, and in particular the sacraments, is an essential part of life.
“Despite a welcome growth in co-operation there are specific religious boundaries, which in the end entail that some faith communities can only be ministered to by those of their own faith.
"I am writing to express my concerns at the recent decision of your board to make all but one of your chaplains redundant, including three Catholic chaplains.
"We agree with the judgment of the Bishop of Worcester and his healthcare adviser that the scale of these cuts means the effective end of the chaplaincy service."
Amicus is representing the College of Health Care Chaplains and is campaigning for the trust to change its plans to cut the chaplains from hospital service.