Philosophy Of Nursing Home Ministry

ORGANIZING THE CHURCH FOR MINISTRY

While the major thrust of this manual is to help Christians in a nursing home ministry, this final part enlarges the scope a bit to help churches organize to meet the needs of elderly people both inside and outside of nursing homes.

This part is adapted from "Developing Programs for Senior Citizens—A Handbook for churches," produced by the Delaware County of (PA) Services for the Aging, and is included here with their permission. We gratefully acknowledge the editors: Judy Oerkvitz, Louis Colbert, Norma Thomas and Verne Dalton.

INTRODUCTION

Churches have historically sought to minister to the special needs of widows, orphans and the aged. Today many churches are reexamining their efforts along
Because the residents of these facilities are unable to get out to participate in normal activities, many suffer from enforced social and cultural isolation.

Life does not have to be this way. We have the option of bringing the outside world in through cooperation between a church and an institution. This type of commitment should be a long-term commitment, not just a seasonal one, although special seasonal activities are always appropriate.

The nature, style and frequency of involvement of a church with a nursing home or extended care facility would vary according to the particular needs of the facility and the resources of the providers. Programs could vary from a monthly sing-along provided by church choir and organist, to an arts and crafts program, to a church-sponsored picnic for residents, to an ongoing Friendly Visiting Program for individual residents.

Programs should be set up well in advance with the facility administrator. Consistency of commitment is a key ingredient to program success.
A "Guardian of the Person" is an individual responsible for making decisions regarding the personal well- being of another: e.g., where the person will live, whether he should be institutionalized, etc. A "Guardian of the Estate" is an individual responsible for making decisions regarding the estate and financial situation of another to further that person's well-being. Because a guardian of the estate can receive a certain percentage of the estate in return for providing management, it is often possible to arrange for a bank, lawyer or insurance firm to take on this responsibility, if there are significant assets involved. However, many older people have little more than a few pieces of furniture and their monthly social security check, and it is very difficult to find persons willing to take on responsibility for managing these assets. It is possible for one person to assume guardianship of both the person and the