Online Course
Nurs 467 - Public Health Nursing
Module 1: Foundational Concepts - Introduction
Public Health Nursing Roles
Public health nurses have the opportunity to practice in a variety of settings with many different populations, at various practice levels. Nurses that make home visits to at-risk pregnant and postpartum mothers are delivering care to individuals and families, using programs that were developed based on population health. Do you love working with children? School nursing, a community-level practice area, may be for you. Are you passionate about serving vulnerable populations? Community organizations, like Paul’s Place in Washington Village, employ public health nurses to develop and run programs for community members. Are you itching to tackle big problems, like teen pregnancy, at their core? Public health nurses at health departments manage multifaceted efforts that combine education, increased access to family planning, and community support. Interested in government and policy? UMSON graduate, Rear Adm. Sylvia Trent-Adams, served as Acting Surgeon General, a role that allowed her to practice public health nursing at the systems level. In other words, the sky is the limit when deciding on what to do as a public health nurse.
In 2012, twenty public health nurses that attended the American Public Health Association’s annual conference were part of a YouTube video discussing their public health nursing experiences. Click here to view the video.
Mary is a public health nurse who works in emergency preparedness. Click here to view Mary’s story.