Generalized Public Health Nursing Program

As licensed professionals, nurses have a personal and professional responsibility to understand the scope and standards of nursing practice as outlined in Wis. Admin. Code ch. N 6 and with local medical advisor advisement.

All local health departments (LHDs) in Wisconsin are required to conduct a generalized public health nursing program. Wisconsin Admin. Code § DHS 140.03(5) defines a program as: "'General public health nursing program’ means the organization and delivery of public health nursing services by public health nurses qualified under s. 250.06 (1), Stats., and s. DHS 139.08 to individuals within the jurisdiction of the local health department."

For determining and evaluating how such a program is conducted, Wis. Admin. Code § DHS 140.04(1)(i) provides the following parameters:

• Level I local health department required services: "Public health nursing services. Conduct a general public health nursing program which shall apply nursing and public health principles to collaboratively assess, develop, implement, and evaluate the services required in pars. (a) to (h), in cooperation with the local board of health, Wis. Admin. Code § DHS 140.04(1)(i)."
• In addition to the level I local health department required services, a level II local health department shall: "Apply nursing and public health principles to collaboratively assess, develop, implement, and evaluate the services required under pars. (a) to (e), Wis. Admin. Code § DHS 140.05(1)(f)."
• In addition to the level I and level II local health department required services, a level III local health department shall: "Apply nursing and public health principles to collaboratively assess, develop, implement, and evaluate the services required under subs. (1) to (8), Wis. Admin. Code § DHS 140.06(9)."

The Office of Policy and Practice Alignment Public Health Nursing Consultant team has developed a guide to outline a generalized public health nursing program as required in Wis. Stat. ch. 250 and Wis. Admin. Code ch. DHS 140.

Access the generalized public health nursing guide

Public health nursing is a nursing specialty that brings unique skills and capabilities to LHDs.

"Public Health Nursing is the practice of promoting and protecting the health of populations using knowledge from nursing, social, and public health sciences."

American Public Health Association Public Health Nursing Section, 2013.

Public health nurses do this through the "nursing process," which encompasses assessment, diagnosis, outcome and planning, implementation, and evaluation.

When applying the nursing process, public health nurses employ skills in communication, collaboration, leadership, and advocacy to promote the health of their communities. Due to the varied nature of how LHDs and their boards of health implement public health services to address their jurisdiction’s needs, the generalized public health nursing program will be unique to each community.