Public Health Nursing Overview

Public Health Nursing

• Public health nursing focuses on improving population health by providing services and interventions that address community needs.

• Effective record-keeping is crucial for quality care delivery in public health.

• Records document events, consultations, and data collected during home visits.

• Reports provide analyses and summaries of services, accomplishments, failures, and program descriptions.

• The individual clinical record contains socio-demographic characteristics, patient chief complaints, physical examination findings, prescriptions, frequency of clinic checkups, and attendance to community settings.

• The Family Service and Progress Record (FSPR) uses the family as the unit of care and consists of four parts: Assessment of the family and the environment, Health and nursing problems, Nursing care plan, and Service and Progress Notes.

• Nursing problems in the FSPR refer to the family's inability to assume health tasks, crisis situations, developmental deficits, and strained relationships or disunity.

Supervision and Development

• Supervision aims to improve performance, address knowledge gaps, and promote professional growth.

• When prioritizing health problems, consider the modifiability, preventive potential, magnitude, and nature of the problem.

• Increasing accountability in nursing is reflected by demonstrating competency and high-quality care, which contributes to a positive public image.

• Gaining autonomy in nursing practice requires control over nursing practice and promoting economic well-being and welfare for nurses.

• To prepare for future professional practice, nurses should understand and explore the issues involved, establish coalitions with professional organizations, and engage in continuous learning.

• Legitimate power in nursing arises from having a professional and personal relationship with the client, demonstrating empathy and competence.

• In-service education provides informal training on new procedures or techniques, enhancing skills for current practice.

Quality Improvement

• The Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) cycle is a framework for quality improvement in public health.

• PDCA is used for continuous improvement, implementing changes, developing new designs, and planning problem prioritization.

• The PDCA cycle can be applied to needs analysis, overall strategic planning, staff goal setting and evaluation, and process optimization.

• The purpose of continuous quality improvement (CQI) is to monitor processes and ensure safe, effective, and client-centered care.

• Quality performance standards guide improvement in the public health system and help monitor performance at various levels.

• Nurses must follow the Nursing Practice Act, which sets legal guidelines for safe and ethical nursing practice.

• Malpractice occurs when a nurse fails to exercise reasonable and prudent care, resulting in harm to a patient.

• The court considers a nurse's professional education, experience, and specific conduct when determining liability.

• Rules and regulations enforced by the Board of Nursing have the force of law and impact nurse practice.

• Nurses are not liable for a patient's failure to follow instructions unless they have a duty to ensure compliance.

Communication and Documentation

• Progress notes record patient data, assessments, actions, and rationale for interventions.

• Flow sheets capture patient information, usually in a structured format, visually tracking vital signs, medication administration, or other relevant data.

• Standard of care refers to the accepted practices and guidelines that nurses must follow to ensure safe and effective care.

• The focus format is a documentation style that focuses on a specific problem, goal, or intervention, providing a concise and organized record.

Postpartum Care

• Walking after childbirth is encouraged to hasten recovery, relieve pain, and promote wound healing.

• Post-caesarean section, nurses assess laboratory values such as white blood cell count, hematocrit and hemoglobin, and urine protein levels.

• Afterpains are common after delivery due to uterine contractions. Nurses assess vital signs and pain levels and administer analgesics as needed.

• Discharge criteria for postpartum patients include normal vital signs, absence of complications, and stable physical condition.

• If a client voids only a small amount of urine, the nurse assesses residual urine and notifies the physician.

Prenatal Check-up

• Prenatal check-ups are important to monitor the health of both the mother and the growing fetus.

• Nurses gather personal data from pregnant women to assess individual needs and provide tailored care.

This quiz covers key aspects of public health nursing, emphasizing the importance of effective record-keeping for quality care delivery. It explores various documentation methods, including the Family Service and Progress Record (FSPR), and highlights their role in improving population health by addressing community needs.