The Functional Nurse Podcast - Nursing in Functional Medicine · Brigitte Sager, DNP

Functional Medicine for Nurses: What Now?

·35 min·2 clips

The new functional nursing program will launch in early 2026 with well over 100 contact hours and two semesters.

1. The Functional Nurse Podcast episode “Functional Medicine for Nurses, What Now?” centers on what comes after the final cohort of Bridget Sager’s Functional Medicine for Nurses course ends in December. 2. Bridget Sager hosts the show, identifies herself as a functional nurse practitioner and holistic nurse educator, and says she teaches RNs and NPs functional medicine principles and entrepreneurial skills. 3. The episode asks what functional nursing means next for nurses who have already taken INCA’s 12-week course and want a more complete path. 4. Bridget says she has taught more than 1,000 nurses through the Integrative Nurse Coach Academy course and learned from live meetings, podcast interviews, and cohort discussions. 5. She says the course was always a foundational overview, not a full start-to-finish preparation for practice. 6. Bridget links the transition to IFN’s decision to build a separate, larger program because nurses wanted something more robust and comprehensive. 7. She says the old course helped restore her passion for nursing and teaching, and that many nurses described it as showing what nursing could become. 8. Bridget references Florence Nightingale’s vision and says nurses repeatedly connect functional nursing with root-cause, holistic, and empowering care. 9. She says the profession has spent at least a decade trying to fit into a broken system and that functional care feels restorative. 10. Bridget explains that IFM’s certification updates and competencies are still in progress, so there is no fixed timeline for board certification for functional nursing. 11. She says credibility matters to her and that board certification should not be used loosely or treated as a simple award at the end of a course. 12. Bridget points to nurse coaching and holistic nursing as examples of nursing specialties that developed board certification after their educational models gained traction. 13. She says functional medicine is a medical model written by medical professionals, while functional nursing is a movement rooted in nursing scope. 14. Bridget says nurses need clear guidance, education, and support that stays within scope and reflects what nursing uniquely offers patients. 15. She says the new membership launched in January 2025, includes several dozen nurses and nurse practitioners, and features four live meetings each month with case reviews. 16. Bridget says IFN now has four IFMCP-certified nurse practitioners supporting members, and she contrasts that with asking questions in a Facebook group or relying on Google. 17. She says the new functional nursing program will launch in early 2026, include well over 100 contact hours, and use case studies and clinical application throughout two semesters. 18. Bridget says the program will be taught by experienced nursing professionals and industry experts, and that early registration will open at a much lower tuition than the long-term price. 19. Nurses who want a structured, scope-based pathway into functional nursing would likely find this episode useful. 20. Nurses looking for a short clinical lesson without program updates might skip it.

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