This page is designed to help public health nurses assess skills, gain professional development guidance, and discover appropriate learning opportunities and resources to meet their goals.

Public Health Nursing is the practice of promoting and protecting the health of populations using knowledge from nursing, social and public health sciences (APHA, Public Health Nursing Section, 1996). Public health nursing is unique within the discipline of nursing because the community is the client.

In December 2004, the North Carolina Association of Public Health Nurse Administrators (NCAPHNA) adopted the Quad Council Public Health Nursing Competencies as the framework for public health nursing professional development in North Carolina. The Quad Council Competencies are based on the Council on Linkages between Academia and Public Health Practice Core Competencies.