Needs assessment of homebound elders in a parish church: implications for parish nursing.

The goals in managing chronic illnesses in the elderly are to maintain the highest possible level of functioning, promote independence in self-care, and enhance quality of life. Parish nursing is one mechanism for providing care for homebound elders with one or more chronic illnesses. However, determining the holistic health needs of older parishioners before developing a parish nursing program is helpful. The holistic needs of elders in two parishes were determined through two multidimensional functional assessment questionnaires and a quality of life scale. Results indicate that this population of elders had relatively high levels of functioning. Quality of life was relatively high and was associated with overall functional abilities.