Welcome
Congregational Wellness promotes health
and wellness in the Greater New Orleans area by educating
congregation members to implement health ministries within
their congregations and the communities they serve. We train
registered nurses through the Church Nurse Education Program
(CNEP) and we train health advocates, community
leaders and church members through the Lay Health Advocate
Program (LHAP). After establishing health and
wellness programs in faith communities, the church nurse and
lay health ministers in collaboration with the pastor and
leaders of the congregation guide the ongoing transformation
of the faith community into a source of health and healing.
Congregational Wellness assists in sustaining wellness
ministries by providing grant opportunities, continuing
education, congregational health assessments, retreats,
quarterly health ministry meetings, networking, technical
assistance, and a host of other program services.
History
The McFarland Institute introduced church
nursing to the Greater New Orleans area in 1997 with pilot
programs in three churches. Since that time, over 200 nurses
have graduated from CNEP. These nurses volunteer their time
and talents to develop, implement and evaluate health and
wellness ministries in over 100 churches throughout the
Louisiana parishes of Jefferson, Orleans, Plaquemines, St.
Bernard and St. Tammany. The CNEP curriculum consists of 20
modules averaging 36 hours of instruction. The nurses are
awarded continuing education units approved by the Louisiana
State Nurses Association.
In 2004 LHAP was developed and
implemented to provide health ministry leadership training
to church members without a medical background. To date this
program has trained over 40 lay health advocates to provide
some of the education and screenings provided by the church
nurses as well as to address community issues impacting the
health and wellness of church members. Health ministry
leaders have developed strategies tackling blighted housing,
public school systems, environmental hazards and crime among
others. The LHAP curriculum consists of 16 modules averaging
25 hours of instruction in community health advocacy,
spiritual care and health education.
View
the Congregational Wellness Church Nurse Brochure
