(Under the aegis of Mahanadi Education Society)
As a Community health nursing professional, you are called on to provide access to health care to many who may not normally be able to afford medical services. Your patients include poor and uninsured populations from culturally and economically diverse backgrounds.
A Community health nurse strives to promote prevention over treatment. By correcting poor health practices and maintaining a safe home or work environment, patients lower risks to their health and require fewer visits to health care facilities. The goal of a public health nursing career is to educate patients through community-based intervention programs, which identify and correct multiple health issues:
Your nursing carrier in public health can lead to several different working environments, including a patient's home, community center and workplace, to provide medical assistance or perform inspections. Opportunities to use your nursing degree can be found in facilities that treat patients 24 hours a day, but employment for a school or business usually provides a stable work schedule within their hours of operation.
Emergency response positions are available with the federal government in teams leading sanitary relief efforts for the survivors of disasters. Large-scale disasters require emergency plans, created by public health nurses, to be in place beforehand to minimize possible dangers and aid in the safe evacuation and housing of victims, if necessary.
While most nurses care for one patient at a time, public health nurses care for entire populations. By working with whole communities, public health nurses are able to educate people about health issues, improve community health and safety and increase access to care.