Become a Parish or Faith Community Nurse

Parish nursing is the intentional integration of the practice of nursing with the beliefs of a religious community. A parish nurse is a registered nurse (RN) specialist who encourages physical and spiritual health and wholeness by developing and leading programs within faith communities. If you are person of faith, parish nursing can be an exciting way to integrate body, mind, spirit and community into your nursing practice.

Parish Nurse Career Overview

The American Nurses Association (ANA) uses the term Faith Community Nursing (FCN) to define the nursing specialty of parish nursing, also known as congregational nursing or church nursing. ANA defines FCN as "the specialized practice of professional nursing that focuses on the intentional care of the spirit as part of the process of promoting holistic health and preventing or minimizing illness in a faith community."

Rather than dealing primarily with sickness in a faith community, parish nurses focus on wellness, disease prevention and health promotion. Responsibilities may include:

• Health education and teaching
• Personal health counseling for faith community members
• Coordinating with community health resources and acting as a church liaison
• Training and coordinating volunteers in support services
• Organizing health support groups
• Assessing congregational and community health needs
• Responding to health-related issues such as substance abuse, addictions and violence within congregational families or the surrounding community

Parish nurses may work exclusively with a single large congregation or divide their time between multiple smaller congregations. A number of faith denominations coordinate national or international parish nursing programs.

Parish Nurse Education

To become a parish nurse, you must first become a licensed registered nurse (RN) by one of three educational paths:

• Getting a bachelor's degree in nursing
• Getting an associate's degree in nursing
• Getting a diploma from an approved nursing school program

You may then choose from a variety of specialized educational programs specific to parish nursing or faith community nursing. These include the following programs:

• Short parish nurse preparation courses
• A master's program that integrates nursing and faith ministry
• A doctoral program that integrates nursing and faith ministry

If you already have a Master's Degree in Nursing (MSN), you can pursue a post-master's certificate.

Parish Nurse Salary

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, registered nurses earned a median annual salary of $57,280 in May 2006. The middle 50 percent earned between $47,710 and $69,850.

However, average RN salaries within the specialty of parish nursing are often significantly lower. In fact, many parish nurses are volunteers. A lot of churches cannot afford to offer competitive nursing salaries, so parish nurses work part-time and supplement their incomes with other nursing jobs. You may earn more if you work for a community agency or a more established denominational nursing program, but it is unusual to earn wages comparable to what you could earn in a hospital or other health care focused setting. To be satisfied in a parish nursing career, you will need to be motivated by the non-monetary rewards of your work—the daily opportunities to improve physical and spiritual wellness within your community of faith.

Parish Nurse Career Outlook

Parish nursing is a growing international movement of over 10,000 registered nurses. The specialty has gained prominence only recently and was recognized by the American Nurses Association in 2005. More and more faith communities are acknowledging the need for trained medical professionals to help them address the full spectrum of needs in their congregations, particularly in light of the current health care crisis. Faith communities are also under increasing pressure to "pick up the pieces" in terms of health-related social problems such as addiction, mental illness and violence.

In addition, the demand for all types of nurses is expected to increase significantly over the next ten years. Job demand positively affects salaries, schedules, job openings, and the availability of training institutions and government grants for education.

Sources:
University of Maryland, 2007
National Health Ministries, 2008