Advent Lutheran Church in Spokane Valley, WA began a parish nursing program to go along with its sterling childhood center and backpack feeding program.
Parish Nursing Fact Sheet
1. What is a parish nurse (faith community nurse)? A parish nurse
(PN) is a registered nurse with a minimum of 2 years experience
that works in a faith community to address health issues of its
members as well as those in the broader community or
neighborhood. The experience the nurse has gathered working
in other medical areas / specialties aids the nurse with
assessment of health status, health needs, and collaboration with
health agencies. What makes this specialty different is the
conscious partnering of health issues with the faith of the client
and client’s family. The core to this practice is the intentional
care of the spirit of those the PN assists.
2. What does a parish nurse do? A parish nurse seeks to foster physical,
emotional, spiritual, and social harmony leading to healthy and healing
relationships with God, family, faith communities, culture and creation. They
have several roles:
• H – Health advisor
• E – Educator on health issues
• A – Advocate/resource person
• L – Liaison to faith & community resources
• T – Teacher of volunteers & developer of support groups.
• H – Healer of body, mind, spirit, and community.
(Canadian Association for Parish Nursing Ministry – 2005)
3. Who can be a parish nurse? Registered nurses with a minimum of two years
experience, a current license in the state where the faith community is located,
and who have completed a parish nurse foundations course for this specialty
practice, which is recognized by the American Nurses Association.
4. How did parish nursing start? The Rev. Dr. Granger Westberg began parish
nursing in the mid-1980’s in Chicago, as a reincarnation of the faith community
nursing outreach done by religious orders, such as the “Parish Deaconesses” in
Europe and America in the 1800’s.
Earlier, Westberg had helped to launch several “Wholistic Health Centers” in
local congregations to provide a team approach to both wellness and illness care
in local congregations, using clergy, physicians, nurses, and social workers.
Rev. Westberg observed that nurses provided a vital link between health
systems and congregations. He urged his hospital to launch a program in area
congregations to provide “parish nurses” who would reach out into the
community to build bridges of healing and hope.
5. What about the name? In the traditional sense of the word, “parish” includes the
whole neighborhood, so this specialty nurse practice derives its name from
serving a congregation and the wider community. More generally it is known as
faith community nursing with a set of scope and standards that state each faith
community can use terminology that is congruent with that faith such as church
nursing, congregational nursing, or other title.
6. Is this only available to Christian congregations? No – there are Jewish
Congregational Nurses, Muslim Crescent Nurses, and registered nurses serving
in similar capacities within other faith traditions as well.
7. What is the training for a parish nurse? There are several curricula, but most
parish nurses have used the curriculum developed by a panel of nursing faculty
which is offered in partnership with the International Parish Nurse Resource
Center (IPNRC) at more than 130 nursing schools and health systems around
the US and abroad.
8. Are there parish nurses in other states? There are parish nurses in all 50 states.
Contact the IPNRC for locations and coordinators of programs.
9. How many parish nurses are there? There are approximately 15,000 parish
nurses in the United States of which about 35% are compensated for their
ministry.
10. Are there parish nurses in other countries? Parish nursing is growing rapidly
around the world. Currently, there are parish nurses in Australia, the Bahamas,
Canada, England, Ghana, India, Kenya, Korea, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia,
New Zealand, Nigeria, Palestine, Pakistan, Scotland, Singapore, South Africa,
Swaziland, Ukraine, Wales, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
11. How can one connect with other parish nurses? The International Parish Nurse
Resource Center (IPNRC) connects with several hundred parish nurse faculty
and coordinators, who work with thousands of parish nurses worldwide. In
addition, many parish nurses attend the Westberg Parish Nurse Symposium
which is the annual professional meeting for parish nurses held each fall in St.
Louis. For more information on the upcoming symposium, visit the “Events”
section of the IPNRC website www.parishnurses.org.
12. How can I learn more? Visit the website of the International Parish Nurse
Resource Center at www.parishnurses.org or call (314) 918-2527. The IPNRC
has a number of web-based, print, and DVD resources available.
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