If you are thinking of becoming a health visitor, hopefully you have found a lot of information on this website which has shown you the importance of health visitors in working with families and communities.
To become a health visitor, you need to be a qualified nurse or midwife and then undertake a one year (52 weeks) full-time or 2 years (104 weeks) part-time programme to qualify as a Specialist Community Public Health Nurse (Health Visitor).
You will find information about careers in health visiting and information on the recruitment process to programmes on the NHS Careers website:
All the educational programmes to prepare you to be a health visitor are also on the NMC web site:
Preparing to be a Health Visitor
Ensure you are up to date with guidelines and policies such as:
- 2015-6 National Health Visiting Core Service Specification (NHS England 2014)
- Healthy Child Programme- DH 2009
- Public Health England website for early years latest policy information
- Understand the 4-5-6 model of health visiting- what are the 4 service levels? What are the 5 mandated visits? What are the 6 high impact areas?
- All our Health: Personalised Care and Population Health (PHE 2015)
- Make sure you are familiar with the Standards of Proficiency for Specialist Community Public Health Nurses (NMC 2004)
- Understand how HV services are commissioned. Look at NICE guidance for LAs https://www.nice.org.uk/advice/lgb22/chapter/introduction
Do join us to access this website fully and take full advantage of the resources for your interview prep.
Personal and professional attributes of health visitors – what employers are looking for (DH 2012)
Be prepared to demonstrate that you are:
- Proactively interested in public health, prevention and early intervention
- Adaptable and influential
- Respectful of different values and take a holistic approach to care
- Supportive and have an adaptive communication style
- Insightful when communicating
- Able to engage others and build partnerships
- Able to demonstrate professionalism
Entry requirements
Students accessing health visiting programmes must:
- Be a registered nurse or midwife. Registration as a nurse can be in any field of nursing (adult, child, learning disability and mental health)
- Complete an enhanced DBS check
- Have a first degree (Academic entry requirements do vary according to HEI but most require a first degree).
Possible interview questions:
- Why have you chosen to apply for a career in health visiting?
- What skills and/or qualities can you contribute?
- What are the commitments such a course involves?
- How do you think you will adapt to being a student and studying?
- What ways do you consider yourself a professionally committed person?
- Can you tell us what you understand to be the role of the health visitor?
- What factors can you identify that may be impacting on the way that services are delivered in the community?
- You arrive at a house to see a child and notice that the child has a slap mark injury to his / her face. Where are your responsibilities? To whom are you accountable and for what?
- What other services do health visitors work with?
- Can you talk about the role of the health visitor and safeguarding children?
