Can I receive Communion in hospital?
Usually yes, but almost nowhere will offer it unless you ask.
A priest, a deacon, or a properly appointed extraordinary minister of Holy Communion can bring Communion to your room. The Ethical and Religious Directives expect trained lay Catholics to visit patients. They tell patients when a priest is available for confession, and they give Communion to those who ask for it.
In most hospitals this happens on a round, often daily or a few times a week. Ask the spiritual care or chaplaincy office which days the minister comes to your floor, and ask to be added to the list. The list is usually what decides whether anyone knocks on your door.
Two things to check first. The usual fast before Communion is relaxed for people who are ill, so being on continuous feeds, or having eaten recently, is not a reason to say no. And if you are nil by mouth, on a modified diet, or have mouth sores or trouble swallowing, ask your nurse before you receive. That is a clinical question, not a religious one.
Where receiving is not possible, you can make a spiritual communion, which is simply a prayer that expresses the desire. It is a long-standing practice.
Sources
Want the full picture? Read our complete explanation: Confession, Communion, and Mass in Hospital
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