The ENGLISH- SPEAKING UNION
THE AMERICAN MEMORIAL CHAPEL TRAVEL GRANT 2004
Scholar: Revd. Helen Wordsworth, R.N., R.M., R.H.V.(tutor), R.N.T., Dip.
Religious studies,(Cambs) Dip. Church Planting and Evangelism,
M.Th.(Wales)
Subject studied: PARISH NURSING AND HEALTH MINISTRY
Date of tour: 28 Sept-4 Oct 2004 and 24 Feb-11 March 2005
Report Written: March 2005
Helen is Coordinator of the Parish Nursing Steering Group in the U.K.,
which is seeking to bring this faith-based, whole-person health care into
the mission programmes of churches of all denominations in the U.K.,
and to have Parish Nursing recognised as an expression of Faith
Community nursing with the Nursing and Midwifery Council. The aims
of the study were to
1.
Establish firm links with Parish Nursing resources in
America,
2.
Learn from the experiences from some of the 10,000
ministers and nurses involved in health ministry in the U.S.,
3. Consider how some of these may be applicable to the
development of Parish nursing in the very different health care and
ecclesiological culture of the U.K.
In order to achieve maximum value from the award, Helen invited two
Steering Group colleagues to attend the Westberg Symposium 2004 in
St Louis, Missouri and from the contacts made there, arranged for four
of her pilot project colleagues to accompany her on hosted exchange
visits to Parish Nurses in Milwaukee, St Louis and Chicago in March
2005. All of the group contributed to their own costs in addition to
receiving help through the grant. The American nurses will be paying a
return visit in 2006.
Report:
Part one: September 28th to 4th October 2004
The Westberg Symposium is an annual gathering of around 600 Parish Nurses from all
over the United States, and attracts visitors from Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Korea,
and Southern Africa, where the practice is also gaining credence. It started back in the
1980’s, when the Revd. Grainger Westberg, a hospital chaplain in Chicago, saw the
potential for registered and experienced nurses to initiate a whole person health ministry
from churches and achieved grant funding to start this with just six pilot programmes. Now
there are 10,000 Parish Nurses in the U.S.A. working in both voluntary and paid
capacities, with almost every denomination, and also from Jewish congregations.
The symposium consists of papers from many of these nurses alongside keynote
speakers on a given theme. In 2004 the theme was “Parish Nursing; a growing garden of
ministries” and the content illustrated the diverse and increasing range of activities
undertaken by Parish nurses in pursuance of health programmes from churches.
Worship and prayer is integral to the practice of Parish Nursing and was a major part at
the Westberg Symposium
As UK coordinator for Parish Nursing, I was particularly interested in the management and
education seminars, while my colleagues attended different topics so that we came back
with a wealth of seminar material for our U.K. pilots. Over mealtimes we spoke with many
practising nurses and learned of the difficulties as well as the joys of their experiences.
Left to right, Debbie Hodge, myself and Lynda Bickley, enjoying one of the many
opportunities to share meals with Parish nurses from all over the United States and
beyond.
Time and time again we heard that these nurses had at last found a place to do the work
that they had long felt called to do. Even though many of them were still volunteers, they
were deeply committed people, assets in their communities.
They treated us with special honour too. We had the opportunity to speak to the
conference and to discuss the differences between our two cultures in the realms of health
care provision, nursing education, ecclesiology and missiology. We studied the curricula
that have been developed by the International Parish Nurse Resource Centre as a basic
preparatory course and were able to negotiate an agreement to modify it for use in the
U.K. This means that our U.K. pilot nurses will now receive the internationally recognised
certificate on successful completion of their preparatory course. It also means that we
can train Coordinators in order to regionalise and grow the work here in the U.K.
Perhaps the most significant outcome for the further development of this movement came
as we discussed the potential of Parish Nursing in a world context. We heard of a pilot with
32 nurses placed in churches throughout Swaziland that had made a life and death
difference to families struggling with A.I.D.S. Reflecting on the need to adjust the concept
within the framework of each country’s health provision development and ecclesiological
setting, my UK colleagues and I proposed the formation of a World Forum for Parish
Nursing with the following aims;
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Develop and promote the concept of Parish Nursing for worldwide application
Contribute unique national perspectives to programme development
Facilitate international exchanges and placements
Engage in the development of courses through the sharing of curricula
Broaden the base for reflective practice and research
Provide a forum for multi-faith, multi-cultural and inter/intra-denominational
discussion.
7. Explore the relationship of parish nursing to other health care professions and
ministries
8. Develop theologies for the integration of health and spirituality
9. Assist non-English-speaking countries articulate parish nursing with sensitivity
A breakfast meeting was held to discuss this proposal and on the last day of the
conference the Forum was officially launched. This photo may therefore have deep
historical significance!
Inaugural meeting of the World Forum for Parish Nursing. Representatives from
Canada, Swaziland, Australia, India and the U.K joined Americans who had worked
in other countries to form the first meeting.
Part 2: February 24th to March 11th 2005
The contacts made at the conference produced around 40 invitations to arrange exchange
visits for our pilot students. I sifted them in order to organise an itinerary that gave the
widest variety of experience possible within a manageable geographical distance. Three
sites were included: Milwaukee, Wisconsin; St. Louis Missouri; and Chicago, Illinois.
The group set out from Chicago airport for the first stop in Milwaukee. Left to right: Linda
Harris, Lynda Bickley, myself, Kim Wilson, Sue Evans
In each place a key American practitioner arranged placements and visits. Pat Olin had
arranged our first stage in Milwaukee. Our three pilot nurses and a tutor colleague all
stayed with U.S. Parish nurses working in different contexts and with different
denominations to our own. I had a memorable time working with a Catholic nurse who
covered an extremely poor inner city patch where there were many Polish and Hispanic
people.
I will never forget the chain-smoking, severely disabled couple we visited. They had no
contact with the church until referred by a local state-funded community nurse to the
Parish Nurse for additional support. She visited the small, dark ground floor flat regularly.
Gradually George began to rediscover his early faith, and as he did so, became concerned
for his wife Nora’s spiritual health. The Parish Nurse provided them with devotional reading
material and at their request, eventually managed to persuade the parish priest to come to
their home and baptise Nora, (with Holy water in a plastic cup!) administer first
communion and confirmation, and perform a marriage blessing all on the same day. The
Parish nurse’s husband came along as witness, and she organised flowers and a wedding
cake to brighten up the gloomy room. The Parish priest’s comments afterwards were “Now
I know what priesting is really about!
The nurse continued to visit weekly to pray with the couple and offer communion,
supporting them in their various health problems at the same time. Whilst we were there,
bad news from the hospital came through concerning Nora’s prognosis. The nurse took
her to the hospital for a consultation and remained with her throughout. She continues to
support Nora’s decision to refuse further chemotherapy and her wish to die naturally at
home and in peace. She will find every way possible to achieve quality of life for this
couple, both spiritual and physical in these last days they have together on earth.
All the participants discovered stories like this one throughout the study trip. They continue
to be told amongst congregations and health professionals over here, and will be shared
as encouragements with the rest of our pilot projects when we meet in May.
Milwaukee Parish Nurses entertain us in Pat Olin’s home. (Pat is standing at the back)
--------------------------
The trip to St Louis was undertaken my tutor colleague and myself, since the purpose was
to visit the offices of Revd Deborah Patterson, Executive Director of the International
Parish Nurse Resource Centre there and glean further information for our study
programmes in the U.K.
Left to right: Lynda Bickley and myself at the International Parish Nurse Resource Centre,
St Louis, Missouri
We also had the opportunity to learn of the preparation needed to hold a major national
symposium, and to pick up valuable resources for our library. We spent a day travelling
around with three nurses working from churches in different parts of the city…suburban
estate, urban state housing, and inner-city slum. The first was working with elderly people,
offering bereavement support groups and teaching health in a school curriculum. The last
two were particularly interesting in the range of health initiatives that had been undertaken.
One had started a nutrition project that included the building of raised beds between the
tenement housing for children to learn how to grow vegetables and sell them at a Saturday
fresh vegetable and fruit market in the local church. The second ran a family advocacy
service from a jeep with a mobile phone. We went with her to the Family Court to support a
mother who had been unfairly charged with neglect. and no-go areas in order to support
mothers and teenagers who were being unfairly treated by the authorities and in much
distress. She described how she had come across teenagers with knives…and persuaded
them to put away their weapons and walk to the end of the alleyway with her. Her sense
of calling to this work came after she had received successful treatment for a lifethreatening brain tumour 20 years earlier.
Chicago offered two further perspectives…I stayed with Nancy Durbin, Coordinator of a
programme of 24 paid parish nurses in a variety of denominations, funded by a Health
corporation as part of their charity commitment. She also ran a regional network through
which parish nurses appointed by other organisations and churches could gain support
and encouragement.
Chicago network of Parish Nurses meet for worship, theological reflection and
encouragement.
Here in Chicago I saw both the advantages and disadvantages of the American Health
care system; funding was relatively easy to obtain, but different corporations competed
fiercely with one another for clients, and occasionally this showed in their policy
statements and management decisions regarding Parish Nursing.
The other perspective I much appreciated in Chicago was the opportunity to spend time
with Dr. Ann Solari-Twadell and Dr. Mary-Ann McGregor, both Professors of Nursing who
had been in the forefront of the movement back in the nineties and whose wisdom and
insight were invaluable to the development of our business plan for Parish Nursing in the
U.K. We discussed research proposals with them and as a result may be participating in a
wide-ranging evaluative study of Parish Nursing practice both in the States and here.
Left to right: Dr. Mary Ann McDermott, myself, and Dr. Ann Solari-Twadell, Mary and Ann
were both pioneers in the development of Parish Nursing in America.
It was certainly a full two weeks. We enjoyed wonderful hospitality and are indebted to the
commitment of those who hosted us. We sincerely hope that this will be the start of a
continuous programme of exchange visits between Parish nurses and educators in our two
countries, and that the partnership thus commenced will bear much fruit in the years to
come; not only as the practice of Parish Nursing develops in our U.K.churches, but also
as we see the World Forum begin to facilitate the growth of whole person health in other
countries.
My colleagues and I are deeply grateful for the scholarship that enabled me to organise
these study trips.