Nursing in a Primary Health Care system involves the person, family and community. It starts where the person is at and acknowledges the many factors that affect that person's health and illness

Nursing in a Primary Health Care system is underpinned by the following principles:

• Accessible Health Care
• Health Promotion
• Intersectoral Collaboration
• Community Participation
• Cultural Sensitivity

When the New Zealand Primary Health Care Strategy was released in 2001, it was clearly indicated that nurses were seen as crucial to its implementation. In 2003, a framework for activating primary health care nursing practice in New Zealand was created in order to realise the potential of nurses to achieve the goals of the Primary Health Care Strategy. The framework provided a definition of primary health care nursing and a set of corresponding goals.

• They work autonomously and collaboratively to promote, improve, maintain and restore health
• Roles that encompass population health, health promotion, disease prevention, wellness care, first-point-of-contact care and disease management across the lifespan
• Models of practice are determined by the setting and the ethnic and cultural grouping of their clientele.
• They practise in partnership with people - individuals, whānau, communities and populations - to achieve the shared goal of health for all
• Aligning nursing practice with community need

In the Nelson region there are many nurses who incorporate a primary health care approach to their work. This website is designed to provide access and information for individuals, communities, and other health care providers who may wish to enhance their knowledge of the varying roles nurses may have in the primary health care sector.

Go here or below for links to the range of nurses working in the primary health care sector