Relevance of the study programme

The public health nurse’s area of work in primary health care is mainly related to child health centres, school health services and health centres for adolescents. Almost all children attend a health centre for the first few years of their life, regardless of their parents’ social position. The health centres thereby help to reduce social inequalities in health. An effective school health service that helps promote good mental and physical health in children and young people is important in a public health perspective.

Health centres for adolescents provide free health services for the 13–25 age group, and therefore represent an important service for those at a vulnerable age with many physical and mental changes.

Competence and qualifications

The contiuing education programme in public health nursing will give the candidate a deeper understanding of the challenges of public health work in general, and child health centres and school health services in particular, and how these services can be safeguarded. The study programme will also qualify students for positions as a public health nurse in the primary care services.

Overarching learning outcomes:

Nurses with contiuing education in public health nursing have in-depth knowledge and a thorough understanding of children’s, young people’s and families’ situations. They have advanced expertise in assessing health needs and can take responsibility for planning, performing and evaluating child health centres and school health services. Furthermore, they are able to work from an interdisciplinary and evidence-based perspective in order to ensure the best possible care and follow-up of service users.

Work placement

Ten weeks of the programme (4 in the spring semester + 6 in the autumn semester) will be spent in a work placement in a child health centre or school health service. VID strives to secure placements close to where students live, but the number of placements we can secure in each county (outside Eastern Norway) varies from year to year. Students therefore need to be flexible and to be aware that their work placement may not be in their home county. Students may need to commute or rent somewhere to stay whilst on the work placement. Travel and accommodation expenses are not reimbursed for public health nursing students.

Incorporation into a Master’s degree

The contiuing education programme can be counted towards the first part of the Master’s degree in Clinical Nursing, which will start in autumn 2020.