How to become a Health Visitor

How to become a Health Visitor You hate Monday because you hate your job. You should be a Health Visitor…Health Visitors provide care and support for a wide range of individuals within their communities, promoting good health and educating people on how to best care for themselves and their kids. Often working with new and perspective parents, they primarily visit people within their own homes to help meet their needs.Typical duties for a Health Visitor include:Offering advice for new parents, helping them adjust and providing guidance for activities including feeding, changing and weaningProviding emotional support for issues ranging from post-natal depression through to anxiety, dealing with disabilities and domestic violenceInvestigating incidents in the workplace and writing-up accident reportsOverseeing drop-in centres or family-planning clinicsAdministering physical and developmental checks, particularly in children, and referring people in need of further treatment to the relevant specialists.Diagnosing l ower-level illnesses and prescribing basic treatmentIs it right for me?First and foremost, to become a Health Visitor you must be a registered nurse or midwife.However, you’ll be working with a wide range of different people, with extremely varied backgrounds. You could be doing anything from existing children with eating and speech problems, through to helping educate the elderly on illness prevention and improving their lifestyle.As a result, aside from any formal qualifications, excellent interpersonal skills and an empathetic attitude will be similarly essential.Other key skills include:A warm and engaging personalityExcellent observation skills and a good understanding of body language and client behaviourThe ability to stay calm in a crisisAn in-depth understanding of health and social care issuesPatience and tactEmotional resilienceCareer progression NurseUp to 25,000 Health VisitorUp to 25,000 Health Visitor Team ManagerUp to 45,000What's really like? I've always wanted to help people, which is why I initially got into nursing. However, after a few years working in a hospital environment, I was itching to get out and help as many people as possible. It’s sounds cliché, but every day is different, and brings new challenges. You could be helping people plan to start a family one minute, and helping someone cope with bereavement the next. However, not everyone that needs help asks for it, and that’s what makes this job so rewarding. Get qualifiedYou will need to be a qualified nurse or midwife in order to become a Health Visitor. You will also need to apply for the Specialist Community Public Health Nursing Health Visiting programme, which will help you get started.