Community health nurses are vital to ensuring a community’s population becomes and stays as healthy as possible, whether that community is a large region or a small city. In Austin, vocational nurses help educate the public on the best health practices and step in during major disasters. They play a significant role in Austin’s community health.

What Is Community Health Nursing?

Community health nursing is focused on helping a local community become and remain healthy. Community health nurses can achieve this in multiple ways, but they typically help by providing healthcare and education to the Austin community. They may also advocate for better healthcare access by working with lawmakers or local Austin government offices.

Community health nurses can work in a variety of settings, and it’s not uncommon for them to work at multiple locations. For example, some nurses might work for a city health department and make frequent visits to the schools, businesses, and homes within the city to perform their job duties. Sometimes, community health nurses work in mobile healthcare clinics that travel to different areas within Austin to provide healthcare education and services to those who need it.

What Is the Vocational Nursing Role in Austin Community Health?

Regardless of the community a vocational nurse works in, the goal of better health for all remains the same. However, different communities have different needs, and community health nurses in Austin must explicitly provide the care and education its inhabitants need, which may differ significantly from other American towns. Some of the roles that a vocational nurse plays in Austin’s community health include:

Assessing Population Health

Community nurses in  conduct research on the health of the Austin community to better understand their needs. This may involve conducting surveys and evaluating current and previous studies performed by previous nurses. To better understand the research results, the you might create graphs and charts that others can easily understand, especially if you plan to use the information collected to advocate for better health practices.

The types of surveys and research studies conducted may vary, so it’s up to you to determine what information needs to be collected. If multiple studies are needed, you must prioritize them in order of importance. For example, studies on new and severe illnesses in Austin may need to be priority since those illnesses can quickly affect the population.

Developing Health Policies

Community health nurses often work alongside government officials to create and advocate for new healthcare policies. This is especially important for underserved communities, where a large portion of the population does not have access to quality healthcare.

Vocational nurses also work with state and federal government officials to advocate for better healthcare laws. To do this, you may share information you have collected through local research or participate in lobbying alongside government officials.

Promoting Healthy Living

Education is at the heart of community health nursing, and an essential part of your job is to share the knowledge of healthy practices with your communities. Education varies based on what you find in community research, and the way you share your information may also vary. For example, a nurse in a community with a high obesity rate may create and share flyers or brochures on the benefits of maintaining a healthy body weight.

Vocational nurses need to be creative when promoting the health of their communities. They may use flyers and papers, lead public seminars, create public health advertisements, or even set up peer support groups for people with certain illnesses or disabilities.

Preventing Community Diseases

Another crucial part of a community health nurse’s job is to prevent diseases within their communities from spreading. This goes hand-in-hand with promoting the health of a community since it involves educating the population on healthy practices, such as handwashing or cancer screenings, to prevent diseases.

Many vocational nurses also advocate for people in their communities to receive immunizations, and they may create campaigns specifically to persuade community members to do so. Vocational nurses can also set up or work in immunization clinics to give members of their communities a place to go for vaccines and information on immunizations.

Coordinating Healthcare

While the majority of a vocational nurse’s work is in a clerical setting, they also provide direct care to patients in their communities. They may work in a hospital or outpatient health center and visit patients within the facility to offer direct healthcare and healthcare information. They may also work to provide or perform health screenings for community members.

A community health nurse coordinates patients’ healthcare with other providers in a clinical or clerical setting. For example, the community health nurse can share contact information for a specialist with a patient or assist in setting up an appointment. They can also connect patients with community resources as needed, such as social service offices.

Taking a Holistic Approach

Any nurse can be a holistic nurse and taking a holistic approach in nursing means treating a person’s body, mind, and overall well-being. Community health nurses often take a holistic approach to their work by caring for their community’s emotional and social well-being. For example, providing or advocating for mental health counseling. Taking a holistic approach is especially important in underserved communities where physical healthcare resources are present but mental health resources are not.

Final Thoughts

Not that you know what the role of a vocational nurse is in Austin’s community health, it is time to learn more about the Practical Nursing program at CyberTex. We can help you be a force for good in your community. Let us prepare you for a role as a community health nurse so you can help your community stay healthy and happy.

Vocational Nursing Program

Classes for the Vocational Nursing program are conducted in a student-friendly atmosphere conveniently located in Austin, Texas. After graduating from the Licensed Vocational Nursing program, students can apply to take the National Council Licensure Examination for Practical Nurses (NCLEX-PN), become Licensed Vocational Nurses (LVNs), and start their exciting new careers immediately.

Contact us today to learn more about our CyberTex Austin campus.