The Community Health Nurses Association of Canada as a federation of provincial/territorial community health nurses interest groups provides a unified voice to represent and promote community health nursing and the health of communities.
CHNC is a voluntary national association of community health nurses structured as a federation of those provincial/territorial community health nursing interest groups who participate in CHNC. CHNC is a recognised Associate Member of the Canadian Nurses Association (CAN) participating in all the rights and obligations which this recognition allows.
Each provincial/territorial community health nursing interest group in good standing elects a Provincial/Territorial Representative to be a member of the Executive Board of CHNC. This Provincial/Territorial representative acts as a liaison between the provincial/territorial interest group and CHNC.
CHNC was formed to represent the speciality of community health nursing and to advocate for the continued designation of community health nursing as a Nursing Speciality.
CHNC provides a forum for community health nurses across Canada to share issues of mutual concern and to communicate through meetings and national publications.
Through invited attendance at national conferences and workshops and by participation on national task forces CHNC is able to represent the views of Canadian community health nurses to those outside the speciality of community health nursing.
CHNC identifies and responds to issues of interest and concern which affect all community health nurses across Canada and represents the view of CHNC to CNA.
As an Interest Group of CNA, CHNC is responsible for developing standards of practice of community health nursing in Canada and for promoting the speciality of community health nursing.
CHNAC accepts the World Health Organization definition of health as a resource for everyday living (WHO 1984).
Primary Health Care, as defined by the World Health Organization, is the vehicle for community health nursing practice (WHO 1978).
Excellence in community health nursing practice.