Parish Nursing was first developed in US in 1985 by a Lutheran Minister and Hospital Chaplain, Granger Westburg, to help provide healthcare to those who were unable to access government health provision. His vision was to take healthcare back to its spiritual roots, with the churches making provision for this using professionally trained nurses. There is now an International Parish Nurse Register with over 20,000 throughout the world and since 2004 Parish Nursing has been developing in the UK, with over 100 trained and 80 practising.

 

Parish Nursing (PN) in the UK is very different from the US model due to our National Health Service. After completing training, PNs work alongside this statutory provision, but are professionally recognised since they adhere to the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) Code of Conduct; on the Professional Register; are ccountable through both the NMC, the employing church, and Parish Nursing Ministries UK (PNMUK = regulatory body); have both clinical and spiritual supervision and a supporting group within the church.

 

Government and Dept. of Health recognition nationally, and local Primary Care Trust and professional involvement means that referrals and discussions can take place both in the public, private and third sector. Each nurse will have professional indemnity insurance and work within the Employers and Public Liability Insurance of the church.

 

PN operates across all the denominations for people of all faith and none, but the biggest advantage is being able to pray with patients/clients and discuss faith issues. Each church which appoints a PN will have first ensured she was capable both professionally and spiritually to act for them both amongst the congregation and local community. What the PN ministry looks like will vary depending on the church, previous professional experience of the nurse, church’s vision and length of time available to the nurse. It can be either paid or voluntary and be anything from a morning a week to full-time, with the PN being part of the leadership structure in the church.

1.       Hilary Howard (2 years as a PN) at Selsdon Baptist Church, who works 1 day a week (voluntary), the rest as a Practice Nurse at two surgeries in Croydon. She operates a drop-in clinic on a Wednesday morning with voluntary help from the church, for people with health concerns, wanting health advice, advocacy, and provides blood pressure and blood glucose monitoring as the need arises. She has also run groups on basic life support, losing weight and a social group which meets fortnightly to discuss current affairs, all of which come from the local community. Hilary has also accompanied people on hospital appointments for support and advice.

2.       Jill Eveleigh (4 years as a PN) at Christ Church, West Croydon works approx. 30 hours a week and is paid expenses and small stipend from a Diocesan Grant. She works alongside Revd. Bill Muncey, helping with Pastoral Care, and is on the Ministry Team and PCC, as well as other PN duties. She has set up an all-age monthly drop-in with a focus on bereavement; a monthly arthritis support group; has encouraged and is present at AGE UK activities e.g line dancing and arts and crafts providing health info and advice; is on the Croydon LINks committees for Relationship and Sexual Health and Hospital and Acute Services; attends interfaith meetings; helps with the Floating Shelter; has attended case conferences; acted as hub for multidisciplinary involvement for particular patients; attends hospital appointments; provides advocacy, health advice, information and signposting; blood pressure monitoring; individual support (her background being Oncology, having been a Macmillan Nurse) for clients and their families. Two thirds are from the community, half of those not having any church attachment. She has been a member of both local and national forums in various health issues and engages in discussion with statutory organisations as the need arises. Jill is also studying for an MTh in Applied Theology at Spurgeon’s College.