Principles and Practice of Faith Community Nursing – AFCNA

This comprehensive course has been developed from internationally recognised curricula that standardise preparation for Registered Nurses to become Faith Community Nurses.

Building on the free ‘Introducing Faith Community Nursing’ (AFCNA) course, this course provides the foundational entry-level preparation for Registered Nurses who wish to work in a voluntary or salaried Faith Community Nurse (FCN) role.

The course is open to others interested in Faith Community Care and has been found valuable by health professionals, pastoral care workers, and chaplains, serving in Christian health services, schools, colleges, aged care services, community services, churches and parishes.

The course is divided into two major topics. The first topic is ‘Principles of Faith Community Care’ and contains 6 modules to prepare every person working in a Faith Community Care role. The second topic is ‘Professional Practice for Faith Community Nurses’. This topic contains 6 mandatory modules for Registered Nurses who wish to work in the specialist Faith Community Nurse role, to ensure that you meet the legal, ethical and professional practice standards outlined by AHPRA. Faith Community Care workers are most welcome to choose any modules from both topics because they are beneficial for every person involved in Faith Community Care.

Each module is approximately 1-2 hours of study. All modules will be available online and a 1-2 hour Zoom class will be negotiated to ensure students have an opportunity to engage together. From time to time some modules may be offered in a hybrid format, with face-to-face days in the classroom combined with independent online study.

Some modules in the first topic are free and available online at the Education Hub. Other fee-paying modules are required to complete the whole course.

The course will enrich your health, pastoral and community care by providing:

Biblical teaching and Christian theological exploration
Research-based teaching and learning in all modules
Key terms with clear definitions to support core concepts
Handouts of course notes to serve as future reference material
Learning activities for personal growth and practical application
Questions to help you apply your learning into reflective practice

Hear from Gabrielle about the benefits of studying the Foundations of Faith Community Nursing course (3 mins)

Course content:

Topic 1: ‘Principles of Faith Community Care’

Module 1: Context and Biblical Mandate for Compassionate Care
Module 2: Compassionate Care of the Whole Person
Module 3: Biblical Principles Underpinning Faith Community Care
Module 4: Theology of Health and Healing
Module 5: Spiritual Care and Prayer
Module 6: Strength-based Approaches to Care

Zoom 1

Topic 2: ‘Professional Practice for Faith Community Nurses’

Module 7: Biblical Foundation and History of Faith Community Nursing
Module 8: Legal and Professional Practice in Faith Community Nursing
Module 9: Ethics in Faith Community Care
Module 10: Effective Communication and Teamwork
Module 11: Documenting your Faith Community Nursing
Module 12: Starting your Faith Community Care/Nursing

Zoom 2

Elective Faith Community Care Topics:

The following topics are (or will become) available for you as elective courses and web workshops aimed at enhancing your knowledge and compassionate care skills in specific areas relevant to Faith Community Care. They will equip you to understand and effectively support the most vulnerable people in your community. Elective topics include:

Family Violence
Loss, Suffering, and Grief
Mental Health
Ageing and Transition Care
Advocacy
Health Promotion
Care Coordination
Self-care to sustain your ministry
Assessment and Access to Resources

Please note: AFCNA is continually adding more topics to our education hub so click here to find out What’s New!

AFCNA can provide personalised education and training for your faith community

AFCNA can provide your church/organisation with professional development sessions in many areas relating to compassionate health and community care. If you have a specific care need, and you want your workers or congregation to be effectively prepared to meet that need, please talk to us. We will help you wherever we can, using our team of people who have expertise in many areas. Contact us to see how we can support you.

AFCNA invites you to be part of God's work in the world!

Faith Community Nurses bring nursing to their faith community, and faith to their community nursing! This role enables to join your Christian faith to your professional nursing knowledge and skills to provide compassionate care of the whole person.