Linda LeRette, a parish nurse at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, in St. Joseph, visits with fellow parishioner Doris Deremiah., Doris and her husband, Arlo, find it very comforting to know the parish nurses are available to them to answer questions and give referrals, as well as to provide spiritual support.

Faith Roberts and her cadre want to heal you body and soul. But they're not proselytizing. They're nurses, and they think church shouldn't be reserved for spiritual healing only.

Faith is the director of the Community Parish Nursing program of Carle Foundation Hospital. She's also a member of Holy Cross Catholic Church in Champaign, where she and three other nurses serve as parish nurses.

The program is based on the understanding that people often need healing their doctors could never provide, and churches always have. The program is particularly valuable to rural residents, who not only are isolated, but often are especially proud and very independent. Resolved to take care of their own needs, they're often reluctant to ask for help — especially from a doctor.

"When you tell somebody you're a nurse, they start talking to you," said Faith.

The program was begun last fall and is patterned after one begun in the 1980s in Chicago. There now are 74 nurses involved in the Carle Foundation program. All but four of those are full-time nurses. The other four either are stay-at-home moms or retired. Also St. Francis Medical Center in Peoria has about 30 parish nurses and Trinity Medical Center in Rock Island has about 60 parish nurses.

Forty-five congregations are participating and nearly all faiths

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are served, including at least one synagogue. About half of those are in Champaign-Urbana, and the other half are in surrounding rural communities. The nurses volunteer their time, but Faith said a dozen congregations have indicated they plan to consider providing some money to help pay for the extra service, much as a religious education or a music director might be compensated.

Kim Busboom, a nurse with Carle Foundation Hospital, is one of Faith's healers. Not only does she work in the trauma-surgical intensive care unit full time, she also works as a volunteer for the Royal Fire Department.

"The vision is to try to get as many area rural churches as possible involved and get them networked," said Kim, a member of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Flatville, a tiny community northeast of Champaign.

"This is something I've kind of had as my own vision," she said. While she says she enjoys her job very much, something was missing. She found her work mostly technical in nature.

"Here, I don't use as many technical skills, but I'm healing spiritually." A bonus, she has found, is the interest is shared by her stepson, bringing them closer together as well. "I think he likes helping others, too."

In addition to regular blood-pressure screenings, Kim also coordinates health programs for the children of her church.

Eileen Baker, a full-time nurse at Carle Clinic in Urbana, began as a parish nurse last fall. It's something she shares with her sister, also a nurse who works for the state in Springfield.

Eileen also conducts regular blood-pressure screenings at her church, St. Paul's Lutheran in Gifford. She also has arranged to have a specialist on Alzheimers disease visit the adult Sunday school class as well as the youth group to discuss the effects of aging. Her sister has presented programs to youngsters about the importance of washing their hands and taking good care of their teeth.

More important than the programs the nurses put on, is their availability. Just knowing a parish nurse is comforting for many. She's only a telephone call away, and welcomes calls from fellow congregation members seeking advice.

Often it's just to get reassurance. Eileen said she sees her role as largely educational. As hospitals and medical facilities continue to downsize and economize, she sees patients getting less information and certainly less empathy.

Once Eileen said she was called out after midnight to the bedside of a stroke victim. Parish nurses also visit shut-ins and people recovering from surgery at, home.

Kim Busboom, a parish nurse at Clifford Methodist Church in Gifford, shares a meaningful moment with a guest at a recent event to help introduce the Parish Nursing Program.

"I enjoy these people," she said, noting that, "of course, many of these people are related to me."

Serving as both a nurse and a Christian is what motivates Eileen. "This is what I like to do. It gives me satisfaction that I'm contributing. That's what we're here for, service. That's the bottom line. I'm hoping that when I get quite aged there'll be someone younger who'll be there for me." To that end, she said, there's an interested nursing student in her church who is waiting to see if she passed her state board exams.

Linda LeRette nurses at Carle Clinic in Urbana and lives in St. Joseph, a community of about 2,600 east of Champaign-Urbana. She heard about the Parish Nursing program when the concept first evolved in the mid-60s when she was going to nursing school in the Quad Cities. When she moved, she heard from all of her former nursing school friends about how rewarding the program was and she wished for something similar.

"We were taught body, mind and spirit. If there's no balance, then you're still sick," said Linda, a member of Prince of Peace Church in St. Joseph.

Each nurse who volunteers to be a parish nurse participates in a 40-hour training program. The classes are delivered on Friday nights and Saturdays for three weekends, with a dedication

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service on Sunday of the last weekend. Classes are taught by area health care providers and professionals from community resources, like the state Department of Family Services and area ministers. Support also is provided by a parish nurse resource center in Chicago.

Linda said the idea for the program at her church had come up a couple of times in "dream sessions" in which parishioners brainstorm a wish list of programs they would like the church to offer. When it became available through the Carle Foundation, Linda saw it as an opportunity to practice nursing the way she had been taught. "It was just exactly what I'd wanted it to be," Linda said.

Nurses like Linda are truly a Godsend to people like Doris and Arlo Deremiah of St. Joseph.

"Linda drops in once in awhile," said Doris. Just knowing she's available, knowledgeable and willing to listen about their health — and spiritual— needs, is comforting.

"I'm there for her and she knows that," said Linda. "Doris and I just talk every once in awhile." The Deremiahs' daughter is about the same age as Linda and lives in Texas. Although they talk to their daughter twice a week, Linda undoubtedly serves as a stand-in.

Doris and Arlo enjoy pretty good health. Outside of child birth and a recent episode, "I've never been sick, in the hospital, any time," said Doris. Nevertheless, Arlo suffers arthritis and is a heart patient, and as seniors they find they do experience maladies for which they need to take medications. An array of prescriptions can be confusing and Arlo is reluctant to go to a doctor when perhaps he should. Additionally, doctors sometimes are too busy to provide detailed instructions. Linda encourages them to consult their doctor when it's necessary, and helps them understand how to use the medication effectively.

For example, Doris said she has a fear of swallowing large pills, yet they have been prescribed to her because the doctor didn't think to ask. Linda explained that Doris' fear wasn't all in her head. In fact, many people experience a condition that causes the esophagus to constrict, and it was that episode that sent her to the hospital recently. Linda reassured Doris that it was okay — in fact necessary — for Doris to discuss the problem with her doctor.

"Rural people are more conservative and polite maybe," said Linda, choosing her words carefully. "They have such a respect for their doctor they tend not to question too much," she said.

"A part of Jesus ministry was in healing ministry and the Parish Nurse Program can be part of that.

Linda delivers her nursing ministry to others in the church as well, including many who are very ill. It's a blessing, too, that Linda has support from three other nurses, all offering a variety of skills and interests. Two are particularly interested in children's health. One of those is versed in sports medicine, making her a resource for all the athletes in the flock. A fifth nurse currently in school soon will join them.

The nurses are a blessing, too, to ministers. At Linda's church, husband-and-wife pastors Dennis and Sally Meyer find the nurses are really making a difference in the life of many parishioners, especially some end-term cancer patients.

"It's just a great supplement," Pastor Dennis said.

He added that he especially appreciates the nurses' approach to total wellness. In a recent survey, he said, both adult and youth parishioners had indicated a need for marriage counseling, and the nurses have responded by developing a program called "Ten Great Dates." If it seems to be a stretch for nurses to be conducting those classes, it isn't to Pastor Dennis. "If your marriage is hurting, your kids are going to be hurting and you may be hurting. There may even be physical symptoms," he said.

"A part of Jesus' ministry was in healing ministry and the Parish Nurse Program can be a part of that," said Linda.

For more information about the Carle Foundation Parish cursing Program, contact Faith Roberts at (217) 326-2683 or by e-mail to faith.roberts@Carle.com. Those nearer to Peoria should contact Mary Adlington of St. Francis Medical Center at (309) 655-6416. Those nearer to the Quad Cities should contact Janet Griffin at Trinity Medical Center, (309) 779-5124.

12 ILLINOIS COUNTRY LIVING NOVEMBER 1998