Spotlight on Health Ministry

By Nancy Quittmeyer, RN, FCN, Trinity Mobile

Editor’s Note: For efficiency, the pronoun “she” is used throughout this article when referring to a nurse; all nurses, male or female, are invited to be a parish nurse.  Qualifications are listed in the article.)

The commitment by parishes to strengthen their role of ministering to the sick, the roots of which go back to the healing ministry of Jesus, is coming back into focus. Health ministry in a local congregation is an intentional ministry focusing on both healing and health, combining the ancient traditions of the Christian community and the knowledge and tools of modern health care.

The mission given Christ’s disciples is to preach, teach and heal, but in the age of modern medicine, the church’s teaching and preaching have far exceeded her healing. The church needs to be true to her calling and has the opportunity in today to use many tools to bring about health and healing.

There is a significant need for the church to address health issues. The current health care system in the United States doesn’t focus on health; it is primarily disease-oriented. Too often it isn’t a cohesive, holistic system; it’s fragmented and enormously expensive. The church, on the other hand, is in the business of healing–of making whole–and of doing it in community. The local congregation is a place where health professionals and lay people can work together to keep people well,  empower and educate, advocate for health and care for people in need.

Health ministry is often, though not exclusively, led and coordinated by a parish nurse. Health ministry looks different from congregation to congregation, reflecting the needs, interests and resources of the faith community. Health ministry does not replicate services that already exist in the community, but rather works with community partners and resources.

Health ministry is a living witness of the healing activity of God through the local congregation, encouraging whole-person health through:

• integration of body, mind and spirit
• increased self-knowledge
• personal responsibility
• interdependence among God’s people

Parish nursing is a recognized specialty practice that combines professional nursing and health ministry. It emphasizes health and healing within a faith community.  A parish nurse is a registered nurse with a minimum of 2 years experience who works in a faith community to address health issues of its members. 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.  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.  She does this by serving in several capacities: health advisor, educator on health issues, advocate/resource person, liaison to faith & community resources, and teacher.  Registered nurses with two years’ experience, a current license in the state where she is practicing, and who have completed a parish nurse basic preparation course for this specialty practice are eligible to use the initials FCN, which identifies them as Faith Community Nurses.

Parish nursing was founded by the Rev. Dr. Granger Westberg in the mid-1980s in Chicago, as a reincarnation of the nursing outreach done by religious orders, such as the “Parish Deaconesses” in Europe and America in the 1800s. There are Faith Community Nurses in almost every faith tradition, including Jewish Congregational nurses and Muslim Crescent nurses; there are approximately 12,000+ FCNs in the United States alone; the practice is growing rapidly worldwide.

Representatives from the Diocesan Parish Nurse/Health Ministry Networking Group will be at Convention in February and available to talk with you about health ministry in your congregation—please stop by our exhibit! We would love to speak with you!