To reduce the risk and liability concerns, Catholic Mutual Group recommends the following:

• “All nurses should be licensed as registered nurses, be a graduate of a credited nursing program and a graduate of a Parish Nurse or Health Ministry Preparation Program.
• Nurses must keep records on all clients. The records are to remain confidential between the client and the nurse and should be kept in a locked cabinet. Even though a nurse may be reporting to a pastor or parish director, the records are to remain confidential unless otherwise released with the client’s written permission.
• Medical information provided to the nurse by a client must be protected as required by HIPAA (The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 Privacy Rule).

Catholic Mutual Group provides an excellent liability policy over and above a nurse’s personal automobile liability policy. It is important for employed and volunteer nurse to maintain liability coverage levels of 100,000 per person, $300,000 per accident in order to provide adequate protection.

For more in-depth information or further questions re: Parish Nurse Programs, contact Catholic Mutual Group at 1-800-228-6108.

There are a variety of types and reasons for documentation in nursing practice. The recommended types of documentation include:

• Client interactions
• Activities of the Parish Nurse Program

The purposes for these types of documentation are:

• Professional accountability
• Professional standards
• Liability
• Measurement of client benefit and overall program benefit to the parish.

Establishing policies and procedures for client documentation will help assure that minimal documentation practices are maintained and the documentation is managed to protect the privacy of the client. Documentation records are released in accordance with federal and state law.