American Journal of Public Health, Vol 90, Issue 5 716-721, Copyright © 2000 by American Public Health Association
Preparing currently employed public health nurses for changes in the health system
KM Gebbie and I Hwang
OBJECTIVES: This article describes a core public health nursing curriculum,
part of a larger project designed to identify the skills needed by
practicing public health workers if they are to successfully fill roles in
the current and emerging public health system. METHODS: Two focus groups of
key informants, representing state and local public health nursing
practice, public health nursing education, organizations interested in
public health and nursing education, federal agencies, and academia,
synthesized material from multiple sources and outlined the key content for
a continuing education curriculum appropriate to the current public health
nursing workforce. RESULTS: The skills identified as most needed were those
required for analyzing data, practicing epidemiology, measuring health
status and organizational change, connecting people to organizations,
bringing about change in organizations, building strength in diversity,
conducting population-based intervention, building coalitions,
strengthening environmental health, developing interdisciplinary teams,
developing and advocating policy, evaluating programs, and devising
approaches to quality improvement. CONCLUSIONS: Collaboration between
public health nursing practice and education and partnerships with other
public health agencies will be essential for public health nurses to
achieve the required skills to enhance public health infrastructure.