Public Health Nursing Overview

Public Health Nursing

• Public health nursing is a branch of professional nursing that utilizes human and material resources within the community. It focuses on promotion, maintenance of health, prevention and control of communicable diseases, rather than solely caring for the sick.
• The lecturer is Delphina Abbey-Awadzi, MPH, BScN, RN.
• The course is offered at KAAF University College.

Definition of a Community

• The World Health Organization defines a community as a social group defined by geographical boundaries or shared values/interests.
• A community is a cluster of people who share the same interests, activities, and background, and live under the same laws and regulations.
• A community is also a collection of people sharing important traits like norms and values.

Defining Public Health

• John Snow is considered the father of public health.
• Public health involves organized measures to promote, protect and preserve health in the broader population.
• It is also defined as 'what we, as a society, collectively do to ensure healthy living conditions'.
• Public health is a science, and art, focused on saving lives via organized community efforts to prevent disease, improve health and prolong life.

Key Focus Areas of Public Health

• Sanitation of the environment
• Control of diseases.
• Education for personal hygiene
• Organized medical/nursing services for early diagnosis and preventive treatment of diseases
• Social support structures for overall health maintenance (e.g., for ensuring adequate living standards)
• Focus is on the entire population, not just individual patients or diseases.

Aims of Public Health

• Prevention of diseases through education
• Promotion of health through screening
• Prolonging life through measures that ensure safety

Objectives of Public Health

• Control of communicable and non-communicable diseases
• Organization of medical/nursing services (e.g., CWC, maternal services)
• Social machinery development (e.g., community projects to improve people's lives; women's cooperatives; literacy programs; access to safe water)
• Education of health workers
• Environmental sanitation

Role of a Public Health Nurse

• Maternal services (antenatal care, delivery, postnatal care, family planning)
• Child health services (weighing, physical exams, nutrition counselling, immunizations).
• Nutrition services (dietary advice for children)
• Family health services (home visits, family health education, care of vulnerable members, rehabilitation).
• School health services (education of children, disease surveillance, hygiene inspection, implementation of health programs like polio eradication, HIV/AIDS programs).

Community Health

• Community health involves the identification of needs and protection/improvement of collective health in a defined geographic area.
• It encompasses the health status of community members, issues affecting their health, and the entirety of healthcare provided in the community.

Community Health Nursing

• Community health nursing is a combination of nursing and public health practice, combining knowledge, skills, and attitudes.
• It focuses on promoting and maintaining good health, preventing and treating illnesses, and aiding rehabilitation of individuals who suffer from illness or disability.
• Community health nurses help individuals, families, and communities reach their highest level of holistic health.

Characteristics of Community Health Nursing

• Population-based approach (the population is the client)
• Primary prevention is prioritized (emphasis on positive health and wellness)
• Collaboration with clients as equal partners
• Reaching out to those who may benefit from support
• Optimal use of resources towards improvement in overall population health
• Collaboration with diverse professionals in contributing towards community health
• Strategies selected to create health-supportive social, economic, and environmental conditions for population success and overall health

Qualities of a Community Health Nurse

• Risk-taker
• Sound knowledge of health and illness
• Adaptability
• Ability to function independently
• Creativity
• Ability to make scientific decisions
• Educator
• Researcher
• Leader and potentiator
• In-depth knowledge (both curative and preventative)
• Sympathetic, understanding, and respectful demeanour
• Tactful, observant, and cooperative attitude
• Ability to adapt to diverse/different situations & people
• Appreciation of others' efforts and correction of mistakes tactfully
• Good interpersonal relationships with colleagues, other health workers, and clients
• Trustworthy, punctual, and dedicated to work.

Roles of Community Health Nurse

• Collaboration
• Management
• Advocacy
• Education
• Leadership
• Organization
• Planning
• Control & Evaluation

Settings for Community Health Nursing Practice

• Special clinics
• Homes/residential institutions
• Communities
• Schools
• Maternity homes
• Occupational settings
• Outpatient departments of big hospitals
• Social gatherings (fairs, etc.)
• Rural/urban communities with varied needs
• Community support initiatives/parishes/churches or charitable organizations and other related bodies.
• Any place inhabitable by man

Principles of Public Health Nursing/Community Health Nursing

• Introduce yourself to the community.
• Survey the area.
• Study previous health records.
• Study & understand the local ways of life, including traditions, beliefs, etc. to promote healthy behaviours by encouraging useful aspects of the culture.
• Address community health needs through available community resources.
• Involve community in planning and implementation to gain support.
• Use knowledge to educate community.
• Identify community opinion leaders
• Make procedures systematic.
• Support community members to assume responsibility in their own healthcare.
• Build trust & confidence but don't over-promise.
• Find out community's opinion to tailor the work.
• Avoid expecting material rewards, instead aim for community commitment.
• Submit reports to supervisor.
• Prioritize felt needs of the community.
• Offer health services irrespective of age, etc.
• Be non-political and non-sectarian.