Parish Nursing

Parish Nursing

"Compassionate health care in the service of Christ"

What is Parish Nursing?

The programme of Parish Nursing was first begun in the United States, by a Lutheran Pastor, Granger Wesberg. The aim was and is to bring about holistic health care in a church setting by having spiritually oriented doctors, nurses and clergy working together.

The programme was brought to Swaziland a few years ago and CATHCA is now (2006) piloting the programme in South Africa in the dioceses of Durban and Witbank. We hope that the programme will eventually spread to other parts of Southern Africa.

Mission of Parish Nursing

Parish Nursing is rooted in the Judeo-Christian tradition consistent with the basic assumption of all faith, that we care for ourselves and others as an expression of God's love. The Mission of Parish Nursing is the integration of the practice of faith with the practice of nursing so that people achieve wholeness in, with and through the community of faith which the parish nurse serves.

The Programme provides the following services:

	Education to individuals, families and communities on prevention of HIV and AIDS
	Collaboration with priests, ministers, catechists and parishioners to bring resources of the faith community to HIV/AIDS prevention and care
	Promotion of life styles that decrease the risk of contracting HIV.
	Proving health screening at parish level
	Empowerment of people to make good health decisions in regard to their condition
	Encouragement in abstinence for youth, faithfulness and fidelity in marriage
	Developing support within the Church and community for care of the sick
	Training of volunteers in home based care
	Counselling for HIV clients and their families
	Control of distressing symptoms, especially pain
	Care of the terminally ill in their homes
	Support and monitoring of clients on anti-retroviral treatment
	Methods of prayer and healing traditions in the care of the dying.