Rural Nurse Resource Parish Nurse Community Outreach

312 W. Georgia St., Floydada, TX 79235 (806)983-8096 coordinator@ruralnurseresource.com

Parish/Faith Community Nursing and Health Advocate Basic Preparation Course

Mt Sequoyah Conference & Retreat Center Fayetteville, Arkansas

Sept 30 - October 3, 2009

This non-denominational Parish Nursing Basic Preparation Course offers experienced registered nurses and Health Advocates (retired RNs, LVNs, allied health, and non-medical participants such as clergy or laiety) an educational program based on the core curriculum developed by the International Parish Nurse Resource Center in St Louis, Missouri. Parish nursing provides a wholistic blending of nursing expertise and spiritual care as professional nurses and health advocates practice in congregations as part of the ministry team. While hosted by UMCOR-Health, this educational program is a multi-denominational missions project organized to assist all faith communities to grow toward wholistic health from a global perspective.

Program Description

The Parish Nursing Basic Preparation course incorporates multidimensional learning activities to cover a wide range of topics including but not limited to:

*      Roles of the parish nurse and health advocate

*      Wholistic health and healing

*      Getting started and functioning as a member of the ministerial team

*      Spiritual caregiving

*      Ethics and legal considerations for parish nurses and health advocates

The schedule includes time for worship, fellowship, and reflection. Consultation with a parish nurse coordinator and mentoring opportunities are also available.

Program Objectives

Overall objectives include:

*      Describe the theoretical foundation of parish nursing

*      Demonstrate knowledge, attitude, and basic skills to practice as a beginning parish nurse

*      Identify a network of continuing education and support

Requirements

Applicants must:

*      Parish nurses must be currently licensed as a registered nurse. All others attend as health advocates

*      Provide a letter of recommendation attesting to spiritual maturity as defined by their denomination or religion

*      Submit a complete application

It is recommended, but not required that participants have a BSN or related educational preparation such as teaching, theology, and knowledge of community health and health promotion.

Contact Hours

This continuing nursing education activity was approved by the Texas Nurses Association, an accredited approver by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation. Approval ID: O-AO-12666-02-08.

This activity meets type I criteria for mandatory continuing education requirements toward relicensure as established by the Texas Board of Nursing.

Registered Nurse participants must attend the entire program to receive 34 nursing contact hours. Health advocates do not receive credit hours.

Fees

Total cost of the program is $350 for Registered Nurses and $250 for Health Advocates. Please make checks payable to Rural Nurse Resource. The fee includes tuition, materials, ANA contact hours, IPNRC pin and certificate, and snacks for all class dates. Written requests for full refunds minus a $75 processing fee will be approved if received 2 business days prior to the course start date. No refunds will be provided after the course start date. Contact your local church and conference regarding available scholarships. Other scholarships may be available through various denominations and organizations. We reserve the right to cancel the course if there is an insufficient number of qualified applicants. In case of cancelation, registered participants will receive a full refund.

Lodging and Travel

Travel and lodging are the responsibility of the participant.  Contact Mt Sequoyah Conference & Retreat Center for details . (800)760-8126, (479)443-4569, www.mountsequoyah.org, mail@mountsequoyah.org

*NOTE: DO NOT MAKE TRAVEL OR LODGING RESERVATIONS BEFORE YOUR APPLICATION TO ATTEND THE CLASS HAS BEEN ACCEPTED. WE ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR REfUND OF TRAVEL, LODGING, OR MEAL EXPENSES SHOULD YOU NOT BE ACCEPTED AS A PARTICIPANT.

Program Coordinator/Faculty

Sharon T. Hinton RN, MSN, FCN, EMT-LP has more than 20 years experience in nursing. She is the Executive Director of Rural Nurse Resource, Inc. Sharon has been a trained parish nurse for ten years, is the parish nurse consultant for the General Board of Global Ministries of the United Methodist Church, and the Northwest Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church Golden Cross/Parish Nurse Coordinator. She is a certified parish nurse educator through the International Parish Nurse Resource Center, has a Masters Certificate in Pastoral Studies from St Joseph’s College of Maine and a Masters Degree specializing in parish nursing. She is the Faith Community Nurse Board Chair for the National Health Ministries Association and the author of the "Nursing in the Church" column for the Journal of Christian Nursing. Sharon is also a Certified Journaling Instructor, and speaks nationally on a wide variety of subjects.   

To Register

Due to limited class size you are encouraged to register early. Registration will close 10 days before course start date. Registration will NOT be accepted at the door.

Request an application packet or more information by contacting Sharon Hinton at sth.rnr@door.net (806)983-8096 or RNR 2750 County Road 260 Floydada, TX 79235, or visit our website  www.ruralnurseresource.org  Your questions are welcome.

Financial Disclosure: Sharon T. Hinton is an employee of Rural Nurse Resource, Inc. and is paid a salary for teaching this course.