Parish Nursing to be launched in Gorleston

Ruth Pillar is to be commissioned as a Parish Nurse in the Cliff Park area of Gorleston later this Spring to offer spiritual care alongside clinical care in the area.

Ruth, from Cliff Park Community Church (CPCC), is approaching retirement following 36 years in NHS Mental Health Nursing, and has been considering a move into parish nursing for some time. With the agreement and encouragement of CPCC, Ruth completed the initial 4 days of training needed to prepare her for Parish Nursing, and will continue as a registered nurse as she steps into her new role.
 
Each Parish Nursing project is shaped by the needs of the area and the calling of the nurse, and consequently Ruth’s focus will be on working on preventative work and early intervention for mental health and wellbeing. She will volunteer for 15 hours a week, supporting not only the members of the CPCC congregation but also the wider community.
 
Ruth, right, feels a particular need to engage with those who are feeling lonely or isolated, especially following the Covid-19 pandemic. The proposal is to start up a regular drop-in with hot drinks, cake and simple activities, a walking group and one-to-one home visits for those who would benefit from some additional support. She will signpost to other services and where there is a need accompany individuals to appointments or support them with accessing online services.
 
In the future she is open to the possibility of running short courses on wellbeing topics which would be of benefit and interest to local people. Ruth is clear that her role is to “complement not replicate or replace” NHS provision and intends to use her connections from decades working locally as a nurse to work closely with statutory clinicians.
 
Ruth is excited that her new role will give her more time for people who need it, and the opportunity  to offer spiritual care alongside clinical care. She will offer prayer when appropriate, or perhaps share inspiration or encouragement from the Bible. Ruth will work closely with the CPCC Pastoral Care team and other volunteers from the church to demonstrate God’s care for every aspect of people’s lives.
 
A commissioning service will be held by CPCC for the Parish Nursing project sometime after Easter. Once the provision is up and running referrals can be made via the CPCC website by individuals themselves who live in the CPCC parish area, or professionals working with them.
 
Parish Nursing Ministries UK is an organisation whose vision is to see “churches and Christian organisations in every region of the UK supported to host high quality, sustainable, accredited Parish Nursing services that facilitate wholistic health and wellbeing for local people.” There are now over a hundred Parish Nurses across the UK.
 
This story is based on an interview with Ruth by Anna Heydon of Imagine Norfolk Together. The full article is also on Network Yarmouth.
 
Top photo by jeshoots.com on Unsplash

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