Research Priorities for Public Health Nursing

The Association of Community Health Nursing Educators (ACHNE) Research Committee initiated a revision of the ACHNE Research Priorities for public health nursing practice in 2006, following those developed in 1992 and in 2000. The committee (a) reviewed public health nursing research abstracts (n=485) from 7 selected nursing journals to evaluate progress in addressing the 2000 Priorities; (b) identified research methods used, health issues and health behaviors addressed, and demographics of study populations in the abstracts; and (c) reviewed research priorities from key federal funding agencies and journal editors. Overall, progress toward meeting previous priorities was modest, with a limited range of methods, topics, and samples described. The 2009 ACHNE Research Priorities for public health nursing include: (1) Population-Focused Outcomes, and (2) Public Health Nursing Workforce. Multisite studies, clinical trials, community-based participatory research, development and/or analysis of existing large data sets, and development of valid and reliable methods are needed to address these priorities. Collaboration among educators, researchers, and practitioners is crucial to develop the scientific evidence base for population-based nursing practice.