As a church, we recognize that health is far more than the absence of disease and we believe that God has made us to experience abundant life. Our hope is that the holistic approach that the Faith Community Nursing Ministry offers will serve individuals, families, and our wider-community – being a tangible witness to the life-restoring grace of Jesus. Faith Community Nurses focus on the promotion of health within the context of the values, beliefs, practices, mission and ministry of our faith community.
Our Faith Community Nurse (and RC Member), Sharon Broscious, is available for any health-related questions. Her background includes a PhD from UAB, a clinical focus on critical care nursing, and 20+ years of teaching nursing.
Faith Community Nurses serve our community by:
- Promoting health education through activities, classes, and groups
- Providing resources (and being a resource) for health-related concerns
- Coordinating the various components to help us respond well to an on-site medical emergency
ON-SITE RESOURCE!
Every 3rd Sunday of the month our Faith Community Nurse, Sharon, will be in our Galley at a table providing blood pressure screenings. Please stop by, say "Hi" and find out your BP!
BACKGROUND TO THE PROGRAM
The Reverend Dr. Granger Westberg developed parish nursing in the 1960s to reinstate outreach work that had been done in churches by religious orders in Europe and America in the 1800’s. Today, nursing performed within churches is called Faith Community Nursing (FCN) according to the scope and standards of practice set forth for this nursing specialty (American Nurses Association & Health Ministries Association). FCN has evolved into the largest contingent of community-based nurses with more than 15,000 nurses involved in this ministry in the United States (IPNRC).
Providing care with compassion, respect, and presence is a hallmark for faith community nurses; characteristics which provide support for congregants that exceed traditional health interventions (Patterson & Slutz, 2011). With an increase in the aging population and higher costs of health care, one of the biggest challenges of this century is improving health outcomes for individuals living with chronic conditions. FCNs that treat individuals wholistically are in an optimal position to influence behavioral change and empower them to take charge of their personal health (King & Pappas-Rogich, 2011).
The goal of faith community nursing is to protect, promote, and maximize health and capabilities, prevent illness and injury, and respond to suffering within the context of the values, beliefs, and practices of the faith community. The traditional roles of this nurse include being a health educator, health counselor, health advocate, and referral agent. The FCN acts as a liaison between faith community members and community resources/services. The FCN can also make home, hospital, or nursing home visits.
If you have any questions, please reach out to Sharon anytime.