Next week we will be starting a new three-part series on public health, to coincide with a major debate on the subject at this year’s RCN Congress in Harrogate. In this report Jane Naish sets the scene for the series

The last two years have seen an increase indebate and discussion about the contribution ofnurses to public health. Leading the way in this, the RCN published Public Health: Nursing Risesto the Challenge in 1994, and established a special interest group for nurses involved or interested in public health work. This was followed by thepublication in 1995 of Making it Happen: The Contribution, Role and Development of Nurses, Midwives and Health Visitors by the standing Nursing and Midwifery Advisory Committee to the Department of Health in England and Wales.