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Feb 4, 2010 8:12 pm US/Central
Nurses Offer Health Assistance At Local Churches
FORT WORTH (CBS 11 / TXA 21) ―
James and Deborah Rather were in their church parking lot when James began seeing double. His balance and speech were off and that's when he asked for his 'angels'.
"She was asking me if I need to go to the ER," James said, referring to his wife who was in the car with him at the time. "I said no. I immediately thought of Sharon or Carol."
Sharon and Carol attend the same church as the Rather's, Rush Creek Christian Church in Arlington. The two women are nurses and offer their assistance to the congregation as part of a program of Faith Community Nursing.
"Because I do know and love this congregation, it's easy to care for them. It's not a hard thing to do," explained Nurse Sharon Canclini.
Paulette Golden heads the Faith Community Nursing program for Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital. "The nurses attend that Faith Community so they incorporate the values and beliefs of that person and it builds relationships," she said.
"It's a comfort to know there's somebody here that's not only educated and can help but they also know you," Deborah Rather said.
It helped that Canclini makes it a point to sit in the same spot every Sunday. When Deborah needed her she was able to find Canclini immediately. When Deborah touched Canclini on the shoulder, the nurse said she immediately knew something was wrong with James.
Canclini called for an ambulance on the way to the parking lot. Carol joined her a few minutes later.
Sharon and Carol quickly realized James was having a stroke. Doctors would later say their quick reaction was critical.
Deborah said doctors told her, "You're very fortunate you got there [hospital] when you did. Nobody recovers from a stroke in their brain stem."
"I can put my hands on someone and care for them and that's my ministry," Canclini said. "That's what I can do. And I like that blend."
The Faith Community Nursing program is now in 40 church congregations, has 80 nurses and at least two very big fans.
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