Partnerships in healthy cities and communities: a social commitment for advanced practice nurses

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Community Health Promotion
• Health Policy

Background:

• Growing recognition of environmental influences on health.
• Global adoption of the Healthy Cities movement, guided by the Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion.
• Increasing community efforts to build healthier environments locally.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the role of community-oriented advanced practice nurses (APNs) in supporting Healthy Cities initiatives.
• To highlight successful partnerships between APNs and community leaders in health promotion.
• To identify future challenges and opportunities for APNs in community health.

Main Methods:

• Review of APN experiences in community health promotion partnerships.
• Case examples of collaborations within Healthy Cities and Communities frameworks.
• Analysis of APN contributions to community leadership development, assessment, service delivery, research, and policy advocacy.

Main Results:

• APNs possess critical skills and expertise to effectively support community leaders.
• Partnerships encompass diverse activities including leadership development, community assessment, nurse-managed services, research, and policy advocacy.
• Established examples demonstrate the value of APN involvement in advancing community health goals.

Conclusions:

• Community-oriented APNs are vital partners in the Healthy Cities movement.
• Leveraging APN expertise can enhance community capacity for health promotion and environmental improvement.
• Addressing future challenges will be crucial for sustained APN impact in community health.