Church Nursing - A way to make a living?

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Specializes in CCRN 9 years, Family Practice RN 12 yrs.

Church Nursing should be a way to make a living. Do all of you who do nursing in a church do it in a voluntary capacity? Are you covered by the church's ? Very interested in your thoughts. Thank you!

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Specializes in Peds, Med-Surg, Disaster Nsg, Parish Nsg.

Yes, Parish Nursing should be a way to make a living, however this is not often the case. Although Parish Nursing has been recognized as a specialty practice by the ANA, many Parish Nurses work on a volunteer basis. The salary for employed Parish Nurses varies greatly, as do the benefits such as insurance, paid vacation, etc.

If the Parish Nurse is associated with a hospital, she/he is usually covered under the hospital's . Some churches also provide individual coverage as well. But it is always a good idea to carry your own policy.

Although I am a paid Parish Nurse, personally I do not do this job for the money. My "payment" comes in the form of knowing that I have helped folks in times of real need in a way that others cannot do......combining nursing knowledge with spiritual aspects to care for the whole person.......body, mind, and soul.

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Specializes in CCRN 9 years, Family Practice RN 12 yrs.

Thank you, tnbutterfly, for your insight into parish nursing! I would love to read more about your duties, a typical day-in-your-life, the size of the population you serve, etc. If you have written articles, a book, or know of helpful resources, I would be grateful for anything that would guide me in setting this up in my own church. Blessings to you and those you serve!

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Specializes in Peds, Med-Surg, Disaster Nsg, Parish Nsg.

There are some articles here that have some basic information. Here are a couple. They were written several years ago, but they still provide good information.

What is Parish Nursing

A Typical Day for this Parish Nurse

There are other threads in this forum as well.

Feel free to post questions in this thread, and I will try to answer them. Maybe other parish nurses will add input as well.

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Specializes in Orthopedics; Oncology.

I see that to be a Parish/Faith Community Nurse you must have a BSN to take the course through the university's and through Parishnursing.org site!

If the new standards and roles say this, how can I ( Diploma RN ) become a Parish Nurse?

Thank you for your answer

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Specializes in Orthopedics; Oncology.

I'm sorry this was posted on the wrong topic.

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