The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA

Abstract #59859

Thelma T. Egnozzi, RN, MSN, Public Health Nursing, Los Angeles County Department of Health Services, Public Health, 241 N. Figueroa St, Rm 347, Los Angeles, CA 90012, 909 868-0280, tegnozzi@dhs.co.la.ca.us

Nurses often enter public health settings with little knowledge of, or experience in public health issues; their clinical experience is predominantly in acute-care settings. Effective orientation on these issues for newly hired nurses is crucial to ensure appropriate interventions related to health determinants. In order to fulfill the requirement for enhanced information, a public health orientation program, spread over a 3-month period, provides staff with the increased knowledge and skills needed to assure a leadership role in promoting healthy behaviors of individuals, families and communities. The Core Functions of Public Health and the Healthy People 2010 Leading Health Indicators provide a general framework for the program and are threaded throughout the course content. This program focuses on topics that place an emphasis on population-based practice; the differences in a personal and public health setting are stressed. Some of these topics are: state-mandated programs; applied epidemiology and selected bio-statistical measures used in public health; environmental health issues in the community; and various methods of interviewing and communicating with individuals, families, and community groups. Another important topic is the application of a community partnership for public health promotion using a public health nursing practice model that places an emphasis on primary prevention, considers broad determinants of health and is guided by holistic health assessments. This program is provided to assure comprehensive and uniform orientation for all newly hired nurses in an increasingly complex public health setting.

Learning Objectives:

At the conclusion of the session, the participant will be able to: 1.Articulate the rationale for developing a public health nursing orientation program. 2.Identify the basis for the framework of a public health orientation program.
• Articulate 3 topics that could be used in the development of a program that increases public health nursing knowledge.

Keywords: Public Health Nursing, Education

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.