Faith Community Nursing Program: Empowering the Hispanic/Latinx Population

Abstract

The Hispanic/Latinx population of the United States is anticipated to increase to approximately 111.2 million by 2060. Nonetheless, Hispanics/Latinx continue to have limited healthcare access and underutilization of preventive services because of several barriers, including lack of healthcare coverage, undocumented status, language barriers, and low health literacy. Faith-based health programs have enhanced the health of marginalized populations by empowering them to adopt healthy behaviors. These programs also have provided a safe and trustworthy environment, especially for the Hispanic/Latinx population, who distrust the healthcare system due to immigration laws and discrimination. Faith Community Nurses have been fundamental in faith-based programs as they provide spiritual care, promote whole-person health, and prevent or reduce illnesses. This project aimed to improve healthcare access, preventive services utilization, disease self-management, and the overall health of the Hispanic/Latinx population by implementing a Faith Community Nursing (FCN) program at a Pentecostal Hispanic faith-based organization in the Southern Piedmont region of North Carolina. The FCN program was implemented using the RE-AIM framework and comprised five health seminars and one health fair in the population’s native language. An average of 37 individuals participated in the health seminars, and 106 attended the health fair. The participants were satisfied with the health events and requested similar ones in the future. Integrating faith-based health initiatives improved health promotion and disease self-management, reducing comorbidities, emergency department visits, hospitalizations, and healthcare system costs.