Abstract
The launch of the Family Health Nurse (FHN) by the World Health Organization European Office at the International Council of Nursing Centennial Conference in London 1999 is actually a relaunch of an old idea. The Queen’s Institute of District Nursing launched their version of the family nurse in England in 1967. Both the FHN and the family nurse are indicative of the wider perspective of the generalist versus the specialist in a spectrum of nursing care where holistic team working is balanced with the specialist practitioner. The beginning point is the needs assessment of patients and local populations, which then indicate the nursing contribution to health care and social care delivery. This article tells the story of how community nursing in Britain has developed from the mid-1960s when it was opposed to the family nurse. The situation is now very much changed with strong indications that the time is not only right for the FHN, but it is imperative that it be introduced right away. This will enable nurses to take up the opportunities presented by current health policy in such a way as to match their professional development with the preservation of the nursing remit for the benefit of patients and the community.
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