Public Health Nursing
Public Health Nursing is the practice of promoting and protecting the health of populations using knowledge from nursing, social and public health sciences.
Vision
The vision for public health nursing in Vermont is to ensure excellence in public health nursing leadership, thereby, promoting the health of all Vermonters and their communities.
Mission
The Mission of public health nursing in Vermont is to work collaboratively to:- Set and monitor public health nursing standards
- Assess the community and workforce needs
- Develop policies for disease prevention and health promotion
- Support implementation of defined public health goals
- Assure access to needed resources
Public Health Nurse Positions
- Public Health Nurse
- Public health nurses are involved in the development and implementation of population based programs; they work closely with a designated community within one of the 12 public health districts.
- Public Health Nurses Specialist
- The specialist’s work influences statewide programs and policies throughout Vermont. They provide leadership, administrative, staff development, clinical and public health program oversight, and community liaison responsibilities, and are able to specialize in specific area of interest/expertise. All positions are located at the VDH Central Office in Burlington.
- Public Health Nurse Supervisor
- The supervisors provide nursing leadership, management and supervision of clinic staff and advisory responsibilities within the community in one of the 12 district offices within Vermont.
Public Health Nursing Program Involvement:
- Maternal Child Health – nutrition services, family support programs and childcare services, prenatal services, immunizations, substance abuse, SIDS
- Environmental Health – safe and healthy housing, water safety,
- Epidemiology – infectious disease prevention and surveillance
- Health Outreach- coordinated school health, refugee health, tobacco control, substance abuse, injury prevention and women's health programs
- Emergency Preparedness and Response – natural, biological and chemical hazards
Association of State and Territorial Directors of Nursing (ASTDN) Public Health Nursing Practice Model
Description of the * ASTDN Model
This model consists of three concentric circles:
- The center circle depicts the nursing process or the art and science of nursing practice.
- The middle circle suggests a flow or movement of the core functions of assessment, policy development and assurance.
- The 10 essential services of public health (pdf document) are detailed in the outer circle.
The model demonstrates the dynamic nature of the practice of public health nursing within the framework of the core functions and the essential services. The activities performed to accomplish the public health core functions and essential services will include all of the elements of the nursing process. For example, a nurse may utilize evaluation (an element of the nursing process) for policy development (a core function) in monitoring health status to identify community health problems (an essential service).
Competencies
State Links
Public Health Nursing Links
In Vermont
- Vermont State Nurses Association
- Vermont Nurse Internship Program (VNIP)
- University of Vermont School of Nursing
- Vermont Association of Hospitals and Health Systems
- Office of Nursing Workforce, Research, Planning & Development
- Vermont State Board of Nursing
- Vermont State School Nurse Association
- Vermont Visiting Nurse Association System
- VT Area Health Education Center, Nursing Grand Rounds
National
- Amercian Nursing Credentialing Center
- American Public Health Association
- Association of State and Territorial Directors of Nursing
- American Nurses Association
- Centers for Disease Control
- US Public Health Service-Nursing
- Health Resources and Services Administration
- Online Nursing Journal
- CDC Public Health Training Network
- Online Master's in Public Health Programs