The nurse as a health educator

Introduction The concept of the nurse as a ‘health educator’ is emphasized in most descriptions of the role of the professional nurse. In the UK, university educational programmes that prepare students to become registered professional nurses stress the importance of ensuring that they acquire skills in relation to the identification of the health-related learning needs of patients, their families and friends and to participation in health promotion. Today, the skilled participation of nurses in primary, secondary and tertiary prevention is essential. This chapter is designed to illustrate effective patient/client education techniques that nurses can use as ‘educators for health’ (Figure 19.1).