Quad Council of Public Health Nursing Organizations

The Quad Council is a partnership of four public health nursing organizations - the Public Health Nursing Section (American Public Health Association); the Council on Nursing, Primary Care Nursing and Long Term Care (American Nurses Association); the Association of Community Health Nurse Educators; and the Association of State and Territorial Directors of Nursing. Recent council activities have focused largely on the effects of changes in the health care delivery system and its resulting impact on nursing education.

Recently, the background paper "The Tenants of Public Health Nursing" was prepared as a foundation document to revise the American Nurses Association’s (ANA) Scope and Standards of Practice for Public Health Nursing. The increasing emphasis of public health to focus greater attention on providing the ten essential public health services are critical components of this statement.

One of the Quad Council’s member organizations, the Association of State and Territorial Directors of Nursing, is compiling the document Public Health Nursing: A Partner for Progress to re-orient and educate registered nurses currently employed in public health settings. This document is designed to improve competence by linking understanding of nursing science to the essential services of public health. Developed by practicing nurses, the document has been evaluated and revisions have been recommended by representatives of the University of Oklahoma and the Emory University - Rollins School of Public Health.

The American Public Health Association (APHA) funded its member sections in Public Health Nursing, Community Health Planning and Policy Development, and Environmental Health to prepare a survey for section members on their education needs in environmental health. Practice and academic members of these sections will be working together to develop the survey tool, collect and analyze the information and develop educational programs which will respond to identified needs. The project is being led by Ann Cary, Ph.D., of the George Mason University School of Nursing, and Marie Flake, M.P.H. from Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health. Final results are expected in the Spring.

Finally, a wide range of academic and practice nursing organizations are developing a proposal for grappling with the issue of nursing education reform. The partnership, which includes Quad Council members, Sigma Theta Tau International, the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, the American Academy of Nursing, and the National Organization for Associate Degree Nursing, was fueled by the move of health care delivery into community settings and its resulting impact on nursing education.