Dispelling nurses' fears about primary health care

While many nurses react positively to the Primary Health Care movement, some continue to express doubt and criticism. For example, in the May 1987 issue of the Dutch nurses' association's journal Het Beterschap, a nurse stated frankly that she was afraid that primary health care (PHC) would destroy the knowledge and skills of present maternity care personnel. She specifically asked that this aspect of the subject be covered at the association's upcoming PHC congress in September. The following lecture given at the congress answers this request for more light on the subject, after the presentation of relevant findings to back the argument for the nursing profession's need to adapt to patients' present needs--i.e. primary health care.