Community health nursing: promotion of healthy behaviors in a rural community in the State of Mexico, Mexico

Abstract

Introduction: The promotion of healthy behaviors refers to the behavior by which individuals maintain, protect and promote their own state of health.

Objective: To describe the actions of promotion of healthy behaviors that the community health nurse carried out to certify a rural community as a “healthy community.”

Development: With the participation of the community, the community health nurse implements health promotion activities. She also convenes and trains health agents, who, in turn, train health providers. Changes were clearly demonstrated by the reduction in the number of visits due to respiratory and gastrointestinal infections and by the increase in the number of women who attended the timely detection of cervical and breast cancer.

Conclusions: It should be recognized the leadership of the community health nurse, since providing care to the whole community and to each one of the parts that constitute it (individual and family) is her object of study. Her fundamental action is to empower community capacity for common care and well-being, through the promotion of health with and for people.