The family health nurse: context, conceptual framework and curriculum

HEALTH21, the health policy framework for the WHO European Region, introduces a new type of nurse, the family health nurse, who will make a key contribution within a multidisciplinary team of health care professionals to attainment of the 21 targets for the twenty-first century set out in that policy. Based on the competencies derived from the WHO definition of the multifaceted role of the family health nurse, a curriculum has been designed which will prepare qualified and experienced nurses for this new role. The curriculum places emphasis on the integration of theory and practice. The content is described in seven modules. Teaching, learning and assessment strategies are based on andragogic principles of adult educational theory and use a variety of methods. To help clarify the scope of the role of the family health nurse, sample care scenarios, focusing on the care of different families, are included in Annex 1. Successful completion of the educational programme will lead to a postgraduate academic award and the specialist qualification of family health nurse.