Overview
This BSc honours degree in Specialist Community Public Health Nursing has been developed in response to the growing need for practitioners to respond to the emerging public health policy agenda and its requirement to develop knowledge, understanding and skills of public health approaches to practice (Department of Health 2003; Department of Health 2004a; Department of Health 2004b; Department of Health 2005a; Department of Health 2005b; Department of Health 2006, Department of Health 2008, Department of Health 2010). Such a context of practice requires that health care professionals develop a comprehensive range of skills to enable them to develop and lead population based services designed to tackle inequalities in health, prevent ill health and work in partnership with individuals, families and communities. Actualising health for wellbeing in meaningful, ethical and caring ways for individuals and communities requires leadership and public health at honours level thinking, and beyond.
The BSc (Hons) in Specialist Community Public Health Nursing has been developed to enable any nurse or midwife, registered on either the Nursing or Midwifery parts of the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) professional register, to qualify and practice as a Specialist Community Public Health Nurse (SCPHN) within the identified fields of health visiting and school nursing.
Content and Modules
The content for this specialist community public health nursing programme enables the achievement of the ten standards of proficiency for the safe and effective practice of SCPHNs (NMC, 2004). This course offers the opportunity for students to follow a particular identified field of practice in either health visiting or school nursing. It is anticipated that on successful completion of this programme the student will not only be in a position to practice as a specialist community public health nurse but will also be able to further their development and consider opportunities in a variety of public health and practice roles.
The programme is committed to ongoing development of SCPHN’s and is contemporary in its content and delivery. A blended learning approach is used with time spent at University and in practice; students are supported in practice by an experienced practice teacher. Innovative methods of teaching incorporate virtual learning, wikis, blogs and discussions to enhance student focused education. The programme incorporates current research and development to enhance quality in practice.