A special group of nurses is finding that there are benefits to screening for certain conditions and providing training in good health practices at churches, rather than waiting for people to go to their doctors.
They are parish nurses, and the concept of providing counseling and support at places of worship is gaining in popularity. "Parish nursing is a nurse who works for the church or a faith community," explains Gretchen S. McDaniel, DSN, professor and director of NurCE at the Samford University Ida V. Moffett School of Nursing. "It's not a hands-on practice or clinical practice, but is more focused on health education, health screening, health counseling, and being a referral agent. They coordinate support groups and volunteers. A parish nurse is someone who helps others work their way through the maze of healthcare."
Samford offered the first parish nursing course in the Birmingham area in 1999, and classes are usually overbooked, with a waiting list. The continuing education course is for registered nurses and takes place in two weekend sessions at a retreat setting.
Debbie Duke, Congregational Health Program Coordinator for Baptist Health Systems, took the first course and is a passionate advocate of the program. "The parish nurse retreat is as much a spiritual retreat as it is an educational retreat," she says. "When I talk to nurses about it, I tell them, 'Don't expect to go to that class and it not change who you are,' and I've had nurse after nurse after nurse tell me at the course, 'You didn't lie to me.'"
"So many nurses act and function as parish nurses even without taking the course," she continues. "When they go to church they are asked about this condition and that condition. They're already functioning in that capacity, but there's something about taking the course that helps you define more who you are and what you're trying to do."
Parish nurses aren't in it for the money. Since most serve in that capacity as volunteers, the benefits are not monetary, but there are benefits, and they are significant. Duke screened a 34-year-old man at her church once, and it turned out his blood pressure was stroke high, although he had no idea that there was any problem. "His wife made him sit down to take his blood pressure, and it was that high. The very next day I saw him at the hospital getting medication. I said, 'If I don't ever do anything else, if I never touch anybody else, I've made a difference in that man's life.' I think all these parish nurses feel like that."
"It takes a person who has a calling and a dedication to be involved in this type of work," says McDaniel. "They feel like this is their way to serve, using their talents as a nurse in their church. I think many of them feel called to do this."
Duke agrees. "When Gretchen told me about the parish nursing class, I remember my heart beating fast, and thinking, 'This is why I'm a nurse.' It's one step further, for those nurses who have one foot in ministry. I truly believe it's a calling. That's why the nurses who do this don't complain about the fact that they volunteer their time. It's the nurses that stay by the bedside, that stay with the family, that feel that extra need to reach out to other people."
Parish nurses serve in all kinds of communities. Obviously there's a need for screening and referral services in low-income communities, but upper-income communities love their parish nurses too. Some have started weight-loss groups, others have CPR or exercise classes, smoking cessation classes and cancer screenings. Many times a church will sponsor a Relay for Life or other fundraiser as a result of the urging of their parish nurse.
Some churches have started paying for a part-time parish nurse, and Baptist Health Systems has doubled their program in the past year, providing 10 part time parish nurses to communities in the area. "As far as I'm aware, Baptist Health Systems is the only one that is going forward with this kind of ministry for the nurses," says Duke. "I don't know of any other hospital in town that's doing it."
She hopes that won't be true for long. "My goal in this job is to watch it change, to where the churches pick up a piece of this and realize the value of it."
