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ESTABLISHING A PARISH NURSE PROGRAM

 

1.      Communication and Collaboration:

·        Share the idea with the parish, parish council, etc.

·        Share the idea with the community, e.g. local hospital, civic organizations, senior centers, etc.

 

2.      Program Plan:

·        Form a Steering Committee:

·        Develop job descriptions

·        Develop pay grades (if this is not a volunteer program)

·        Prepare a budget (salaries, supplies, educational resources, etc.)

·        Write a letter of agreement between participants (if another health care institution is participating in some way in the program)

·        Establish an orientation process for the parish, and for the parish nurses

·        Develop a commissioning service for use in the parish

·        Design program standards and a tool for tracking the e number and type of interactions a parish nurse engages in

·        Create an ongoing process to evaluate the program’s success

·        (SINCE ALL PROGRAMS ARE ADAPTED TO FIT LOCAL NEEDS, THE ABOVE CAN BE DONE AS/IF NEEDED).

 

ROLE OF THE PARISH NURSE

 

Health Consultant – consult on needs; give assessment; follow-up visits to discharged patients.

Education ----------- provide new programs on health, stress, parenting, teen-age suicide, flu shots, etc.  (This is limited only by the needs of your community).

Advocate ------------ assist people with dealing with agencies and clarifying information.

 

Liaison ---------------- to resources available within the community.

 

Trainer or Volunteers – train lay volunteers on how to visit the sick.

 

Healer --------------- help people to understand how faith/wellness are related.

 

 

 

 

 

POTENTIAL PARTNEERS AND IMPLEMENTING A PARISH NURSE PROGRAM

 

A.     A Parish Nurse Program can be:

·        Parish based: volunteer or paid

·        Institution based: volunteer or paid

·        Combination of parish/institution: volunteer or paid

 

B.     Potential Partners

·        Once program basics are in place, potential partners can be sought through the following:

Ø      community inquiries and networks

Ø      talks presented to parish leaders and congregations

Ø      discussions with pastor, parish staff, and lay leadership

 

      When assessing whether a partnership with a parish will be viable, the healthcare organization should do the following:

Ø      identify the needs and priorities of the populations it wishes to serve

Ø      ascertain whether the parish has sufficient staff and financial resources to support a parish nurse program

Ø      assess parishioners’ and parish leaders’ understanding of the parish nurse concept, the mission of holistic health, and the structure of the parish nurse program

Ø      determine parish’s level of commitment to stipulations in the letter of agreement

Ø      assess the willingness of church leaders to integrate the parish nurse into the staff