Psychosocial Nursing in Public Health and Home Care

PSYCHOSOCIAL NURSING IN PUBLIC HEALTH AND HOME CARE

Psychosocial nursing is an important area of public health nursing practice and home care. Public health nurses working in the community provide mental health prevention services to reduce risks to the mental health of persons, families, and communities. Examples include primary prevention, such as stress management education; secondary preven-tion, such as early identification of potential mental health problems; and tertiary prevention, such as monitoring and coordinating rehabilitation services for the mentally ill.

The clinical practice of public health and home care nurses includes caring for clients and families with issues such as substance abuse, domestic violence, child abuse, grief, and depression. In addition, public health nurses care for children in schools and teach health-related sub-jects to community groups and agencies. Mental health services that public health and home care nurses provide can reduce the suffering that many people experience as a result of physical disease, mental disorders, social and emotional disadvantages, and other vulnerabilities.