The Swiss Center for Islam and Society has announced the start of a training programme that will prepare Muslim spiritual leaders to give emergency support in hospitals, at care-homes or after an accident.

The need for qualified Muslim chaplains in public institutions has been felt for several years in Zurich. To fill this gap, the Swiss Center for Islam and Society said it was offering a continuing education course – set up jointly with the canton – as of Saturday.

The course “Chaplaincy and accompaniment in an interreligious context” also has the backing of Zurich’s two official churches and an umbrella body grouping Muslim organisations.

The aim is to train six women and six men, qualified in Islamic theology or Islamic studies, to accompany Muslim patients in distress or at the end of life.

Future Muslim chaplains will undergo security clearance and intern in public institutions, such as hospitals.