Where do we keep caring information?
Caring information is stored in Planning Center Online’s notes. There are 7 categories of notes:
- Caring Notes: Repository for the majority of caring related information.
- Emergency Contacts: Recording names and contact information for congregations, particularly their non-foothills connected friends or family members.
- Meals: Notes that a meal train has been set up and for what reason
- Ministerial Discretionary Fund Notes: Restricted notes for our ministry team to record displacements of the Discretionary Fund.
- Pastoral Notes: Restricted notes for our ministry team to sparingly record pastorally privileged information.
- Active Cards: Records who the congregation is currently sending cards to and why. All non-active notes will be deleted each week. It will be likely that notes in this category are copies of caring notes.
- Active Pastoral Prayer: Records who the congregation is currently holding in caring concern or celebration. All non-active notes will be deleted each week. It will be likely that notes in this category are copies of caring notes.
How do we use slack?
Caring Channel
The caring channel should not be used to store information. Information should be stored in caring notes. Caring Notes from PCO will be pushed to slack each morning. The Caring channel should be the place for active discussion of caring concerns.
Overview of Caring Procedures
Caring Inputs
- Email: Caring@foothillsuu.org
- Prayer and Caring Request Form
- Found on the website the form entitled “Request Prayers & Support for Your Joys & Concerns“.
- This form allows members of the congregation to share joys, sorrows, and caring needs.
-
Questions prompt individual for potential follow up, ie:
- Share this in an upcoming pastoral prayer
- Send cards from the congregation
- Provide a meal or two
- Follow up with a member of our trained listening team
- Each submission adds the submitter to the Prayer and Caring Request Form Triage workflow .
- Caring Updates Form
- Used by parish visitors and staff
- Contents emailed for manual triage to caring coordinator
- Joy and Concerns Book
- Manually added to the Prayer and Caring Request Triage workflow
- *New* seatback Caring Cards
- Collected on Sundays and needs to be manually entered into the Prayer and Caring Request Triage
Caring Notifications & Recording
Workflow: Prayer and Caring Request Triage
Form submissions will be automatically added to this workflow
Step 1: Adding Caring Notes
If the person is submitting about themselves, the ‘nature of concern / what’s going on’? response will automatically be added to their caring notes.
If the person is submitting for another person, it will need to be manually added.
Step 2 : Initiating Follow Up
If a person selects one of the follow up actions it will need to be initiated. This can be done in the same way as the Parish Visitor Caring Update Form (see below for instructions).
Step 3: Determine If Major Life Event
- Add the individual to the Pastoral Care Anniversaires Workflow
- Add details to the card about event
- Snooze the card for a set period of time, when the snoozed period of time is elapsed, we will check-in with them
Caring Updates (Parish Visitors and Staff)
Parish Visitors and Staff submit updates via the Caring Update Form.
Tasks for All Updates:
- Copy the ‘Update’ submission from the form into the person’s PCO profile (caring notes)
Caring Outputs
Cards and Pastoral Prayer
Any PCO Notes in the Active Cards or Active Pastoral Prayer will be included in the weekly cards, prayer, and caring corner (respectively). Notes should be written as they will appear in their various settings ie. at the card table or in the communicator.
Meals
Add the person to the Meal Request Workflow and email information to Meals Coordinator
Ministerial Follow Up
Discern if needed and then pass along to Pastoral Care Lead
Baby Blanket and Comfort Shawl
Add them to the Comfort Shawl or Baby Blanket workflow, empower the PV to delivery the shawl, or connect with the Shawl teams to deliver. Once delivered move the card in the workflow to complete
Follow Up from another Parish Visitor
- For needs that should be tracked by a PV in an acute time frame, either:
- Pass along to next On-Call PV, or
- Find another PV to follow up
- If the need is actually for ongoing care and check-ins, see Ongoing Care below
Assignment to a PV for Ongoing Care
- Connect with PV Coordinator and Pastoral Care Lead to determine the best fit for an ongoing PV relationship.
If Major Life Event
- Add the individual to the Pastoral Care Anniversaires Workflow
- Add details to the card about event
- Snooze the card for a set period of time, when the snoozed period of time is elapsed, we will check-in with them
Weekly Caring Workflow
Active Cards
Each Monday all Active Card notes are deleted, unless cards were not sent on the previous Sunday.
Before Sunday, anyone who should receive card the following Sunday should have an Active Card note.
Active Pastoral Prayer
Each Monday, any written prayers are added as Caring Notes AND Active Pastoral Prayer notes to be included in the Caring Corner.
After Wednesday but before Sunday, any note that was included in last weeks pastoral prayer should be deleted.
After Wednesday but before Sunday, any note to be included in Sundays Pastoral Prayer should be added as an Active Pastoral Prayer note.
When Pastoral Prayers are not shared during the devotional time on Sunday all active prayer notes are left in for inclusion next week.