In our community, parish nursing is a health ministry between a hospital and area churches. This ministry is based on the belief that our health is wholistic and that our bodies, our minds and our spirits need to be in harmony if we are to be well or “whole.” Parish nursing, or faith community nursing, holds the spiritual dimension to be central to the practice.

The nurse by nature of the profession is in a unique way suited for this: “She (he) has one foot in the sciences and one in the humanities,” says Granger Westberg, chaplain, author, and founder of Parish Nursing. She or he is not clergy, nor physician – she or he is approachable but equipped with knowledge to help her or him assess nearly every situation. A parish nurse is a registered nurse who works closely with church staff to promote health, wellness, and healing through education and spiritual support for their congregation.

Within the first year of beginning a parish nurse program in a faith community, nurses are encouraged to attend a Faith Community Nurse (FCN) Basic Preparation Course in order to build a solid foundation for their health ministry and nursing practice. Each year, this course is offered locally through the International Parish Nurse Resource Center and is sponsored by the CMC-NorthEast Faith Community Health Ministry. This course provides the nurse with 33 contact hours, supplying the nurse with a foundational knowledge of the connection between faith and health and the supporting roles of the faith community nurse and the faith community.

Learn more about the Roles of the Parish Nurse.

Download the FCN Basic Preparation Course flyer for May 2010.

Download the FCN Basic Preparation Course application for May 2010.