Environmental health and nursing practice: a survey of registered nurses.

The purpose of this study was to develop and implement a survey for Registered Nurses (RNs) that explored beliefs regarding environmental health (EH) and nursing practice, perceived preparation related to EH, barriers to addressing EH in practice, and factors that may facilitate integrating EH into nursing practice. Five hundred surveys were mailed, with a 39% return rate. Results indicate that RNs believe the environment and human health are related, but feel poorly prepared to address EH in practice. Barriers and facilitators to integrating EH into practice were found. The need for programs and resources to ensure basic EH education for all nurses was substantiated. Copyright 2002, Elsevier Science (USA). All rights reserved.