Asked to name a blessing after gathering in retreat with 33 of her fellow parish nurses and care coordinators from around the Diocese, Elaine Kunigonis’ answer was simple and direct: “being with them face to face.”
Kunigonis, who has served in Saint Joseph Parish, Somers Point, since the early 2000s, said such interaction had been regrettably off the table since the pandemic. “We had to do everything virtually.”
The return of the retreat, held May 11 in Mullica Township, “was a gift,” she said, explaining that it allowed nurses and care coordinators to again “see and collaborate with each other.”
“I truly felt the power of the Holy Spirit in sharing our experiences of working through COVID. Then to experience the gift of Confession and Mass and receive the Sacrament and sharing a meal … it was really special.”
Indeed, there was a feeling of camaraderie and support present throughout the day as, for the first time, care coordinators with VITALity Catholic Healthcare Services joined parish nurses for the event. The day included time for individual reflection and prayer, fellowship, Mass and the opportunity for Confession.
The theme of the retreat, coordinated by Nicole Keefer, RN, VITALity’s director of parish nursing, was “Weathering the Storm: How do you stay afloat in healthcare?” The question was addressed from the start, as Deacon Gerard Jablonowski, VITALity’s executive director, set the spiritual and communal tones of the day in his main reflection.
He explained that when he and Keefer were planning the day, they agreed that the focus would be on helping retreatants process” all the events in the past two and a half years within a spiritual context” and the impact the pandemic took “personally, professionally and spiritually.”
He urged the retreatants to dialogue with their peers on “how you weathered that storm [and to] reflect on what you may have drawn upon to survive and emerge to where you are today.” He also encouraged them to share this “not just with each other, but with the Lord as well.”
As healthcare professionals, he said, “you were either on the front lines of direct patient care” or providing support to the front lines during the pandemic. “Each of you has had unique perspectives and experiences.”
Hopefully, he said, the “experience of coming together on the common ground of our lives as nurses or healthcare professionals will bring us to a better place in our hearts and minds as we continue to dedicate our lives in the healing professions.”
The emphasis on coming together on that common ground was strong throughout the day, said Keefer, who joined parish ministry in 2018. “The focus on sharing together was a recognition [of the fact that] many people are anxious to not feel alone. They don’t want to feel like they are on an island.”
Networking interspersed with reflection, Confession, Mass and a luncheon, was a way of addressing those concerns. “It was a safe space to communicate with each other,” she said.
Another safe space, Keefer said, was Confession. “This was the first time that we had Confession, and the line was so long. … That was really nice to see.”
The day ended with medals of Saint Catherine of Siena, a patron saint of nursing, being blessed and handed out with reflection books so the retreatants would remember they are not alone, Keefer said.
Pat Williams, a care coordinator for VITALity, who was among those attending for the first time, described the whole day as “wonderful. I thought the deacon’s opening talk related what we do to the Bible and made you feel good as a Catholic. We had a wonderful outdoor Mass. …. It was important to be there – I felt that they really care about us, and it was gratifying and renewing. I’m ready to go again next year. It put some gas in my engine!”
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