wfn.org | Parish nurse joins UCC national office

[powellb@ucc.org]

Nov. 27, 1996
Office of Communication
United Church of Christ
Diane C. Madison
(216) 736-2226
E-mail:  madisond@ucc.org
On the World Wide Web:  http://www.ucc.org

'Parish nurse' at national church offices one of a
growing number in new health-care calling

      CLEVELAND -- Thanks to an innovative parish
nursing program, staffers at the United Church of
Christ's national offices in Cleveland not only have
their aches and pains addressed, they also receive a
special kind of spiritual nurture.
      Lisa Thomas, R.N., of Westlake, Ohio, started
work part-time at the national UCC offices in October.
Thomas, 35, brings 16 years of experience in public
health and home care to her new post.  She is one of a
growing number of parish nurses throughout the United
States, and part of a Cleveland-based program
developed through the cooperation of UCC-related
Fairview General Hospital and Lutheran Medical Center.
      In the last three years, more than 25
congregations in Greater Cleveland have started parish
nursing programs.  UCC-related Deaconess Health
Systems in St. Louis, which also has a parish nurse
program, estimates more than 1,000 U.S. congregations
of various denominations have parish nurses.  There's
even an International Parish Nurse Resource Center in
Chicago, part of Advocate Health Care, related to the
UCC and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
      A parish nurse usually works for one or two
congregations part time, helping parishioners not only
with basic health care but as a health educator and
advocate as well.  Thomas, who serves 213 employees at
the downtown-Cleveland church offices, is breaking new
ground as a parish nurse in the workplace.  She is
thought to be the only parish nurse in an office
setting.
      "This position is my calling," Thomas says.  "If
Jesus found healing to be such an important part of
his ministry, I, as a Christian called to healing, can
only hope to be the same."
      Thomas says she is concerned not just about
employees' physical health but about their emotional
and spiritual health as well.  So when she is in the
office, not only does she take blood pressures, give
flu shots and administer aspirin for headaches -- she
is also available for prayer.  "If I see someone who
is not quite having a good day, I will pray with
them," she says.  "Unless people are healthy in all
aspects of their life, they are not truly healthy."
      Through face-to-face visits and E-mail, Thomas
plans to keep the staff updated on medical issues and
concerns.  She will also offer materials aimed at
raising awareness at certain times of the year, such
as National Diabetes Month and World AIDS Day.
      A graduate of Ohio State University in Columbus,
with a B.S. degree in nursing (1983), Thomas was a
home care nurse for the Visiting Nurse Association of
Cleveland from 1990 to 1996.  She has also worked for
the City of Cleveland Health Department and University
Hospitals of Cleveland.
      "As Christians, we are called to healing," says
Thomas.  "Whether it's being a good friend, a kind co-
worker, or simply helping those who cannot help
themselves, we are all called to the ministry of
healing."
      The United Church of Christ, with more than 1.5
million members and 6,100 congregations in the United
States and Puerto Rico, was formed by the 1957 union
of the Congregational Christian Churches and the
Evangelical and Reformed Church.
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