Top 12 Community Health Nurse Skills to Put on Your Resume
In community health nursing, a resume packed with the right skills doesn’t just look good—it signals grounded practice and real-world impact. Show these 12 core competencies and you’re telling employers you can navigate clinics, living rooms, and school gyms while keeping people safer, healthier, better informed.
Community Health Nurse Skills
- Patient Education
- Health Promotion
- Disease Prevention
- Vaccination Administration
- Wound Care
- Epidemiology Analysis
- Electronic Health Records (EHR)
- Telehealth Proficiency
- Multicultural Competency
- Crisis Intervention
- Case Management
- Health Assessment
1. Patient Education
Patient education means giving people the knowledge and confidence to manage conditions, understand risks, and make decisions that fit their lives and values. In homes, shelters, or clinics, it’s tailored, practical, and doable.
Why It's Important
It boosts understanding, medication adherence, and self-management. It cuts complications. It nudges healthier choices and lowers costs. Most of all, it builds trust.
How to Improve Patient Education Skills
Keep it clear, relevant, and repeated. Try these:
Assess learning needs: Ask what they know, how they learn best, and what matters most right now.
Customize content: Match literacy level, culture, and language. Use interpreter services when needed.
Use plain language: Avoid jargon. Show, don’t tell. Visuals beat walls of text.
Leverage simple tech: Text reminders, brief videos, printed handouts. Keep access in mind.
Teach-back: Have patients explain their plan in their own words. Fill gaps gently.
Invite questions: Normalize uncertainty. “What worries you most?” opens doors.
Follow up: A quick check-in catches confusion early and keeps momentum.
Small, repeatable steps create better outcomes and more confident patients.
How to Display Patient Education Skills on Your Resume
2. Health Promotion
Health promotion is the engine behind prevention: programs, policies, and nudges that help communities eat well, move more, manage stress, and reduce risk before illness lands.
Why It's Important
It shifts care upstream. Less disease, better quality of life, fewer avoidable hospital visits. Stronger communities.
How to Improve Health Promotion Skills
Assess local needs: Pair data with community voices. Listen first.
Target the message: Tailor topics—nutrition, mental health, chronic disease—based on what the community prioritizes.
Design for behavior change: Make the healthy choice easier with simple steps, reminders, and community challenges.
Partner widely: Schools, faith groups, small businesses, parks and rec. Coalitions amplify reach.
Use social platforms thoughtfully: Short, clear posts; consistent cadence; local voices.
Advocate for supportive policies: Smoke-free spaces, safe sidewalks, access to fresh foods.
Measure and refine: Track participation, outcomes, and feedback. Adjust quickly.
Real change happens when programs fit daily life and community priorities.
How to Display Health Promotion Skills on Your Resume
3. Disease Prevention
Prevention means stopping illness before it starts or worsening. Education, screening, vaccines, safer environments—the whole toolkit.
Why It's Important
Fewer infections, fewer strokes, fewer late diagnoses. Lower costs. More years feeling well.
How to Improve Disease Prevention Skills
Boost awareness: Teach hygiene, risk factors, and early warning signs in plain language.
Strengthen vaccination access: Offer convenient clinics, reminder systems, and clear counseling.
Run screenings: Blood pressure, A1C, cancer screenings—bring services to where people gather.
Promote healthy living: Practical nutrition tips, movement breaks, smoking cessation supports that actually fit budgets and schedules.
Build partnerships: Work with local organizations to expand reach and close care gaps.
Meet people where they are, and prevention sticks.
How to Display Disease Prevention Skills on Your Resume
4. Vaccination Administration
Vaccination administration covers screening, consent, preparation, dosing, routes, safety monitoring, documentation, and education about immunizations.
Why It's Important
It prevents outbreaks, protects vulnerable people, and saves lives. Simple as that.
How to Improve Vaccination Administration Skills
Communicate clearly: Address myths with empathy and evidence. Personalize risk–benefit discussions.
Streamline access: Mobile clinics, walk-ins, after-hours options, on-site events at schools and workplaces.
Use smart systems: EHR prompts, state immunization registry checks, automated reminders.
Keep current: Follow the latest schedules and storage/handling guidance. Review annually.
Monitor safety: Screen for contraindications, observe post-vaccination, report adverse events promptly.
Engage community partners: Local leaders and organizations can boost trust and turnout.
Convenience plus trust drives higher uptake.
How to Display Vaccination Administration Skills on Your Resume
5. Wound Care
Wound care means assessment, infection control, moisture balance, offloading or pressure relief, and steady reassessment until healing happens—or complications are caught early.
Why It's Important
It prevents infections and amputations, speeds recovery, and keeps people out of the hospital. For many patients, it’s the difference between independence and decline.
How to Improve Wound Care Skills
Update your toolkit: Stay current on dressings, negative-pressure therapy, debridement approaches, and antimicrobial stewardship.
Educate patients and caregivers: Simple routines for cleaning, dressing changes, nutrition, and warning signs.
Use telehealth thoughtfully: Remote check-ins support adherence and quick adjustments.
Address root causes: Offload pressure, manage edema, optimize diabetes control, and support smoking cessation.
Coordinate with specialists: Build fast referral pathways for complex wounds.
Track outcomes: Measure healing time, infection rates, and readmissions to improve practice.
Consistent, evidence-based routines change trajectories.
How to Display Wound Care Skills on Your Resume
6. Epidemiology Analysis
Epidemiology analysis looks at who gets sick, where, when, and why—then turns that insight into action with targeted interventions.
Why It's Important
It reveals patterns, pinpoints risks, and shows what works. Resources go further when guided by solid data.
How to Improve Epidemiology Analysis Skills
Strengthen data quality: Standardize collection, validate entries, and close gaps fast.
Visualize smartly: Use dashboards and GIS maps to spot clusters and trends at a glance.
Keep learning: Refresh on study design, surveillance methods, and biostat basics.
Collaborate: Share data and insights with health departments, clinics, schools, and community partners.
Act on evidence: Implement, monitor, and iterate. Let results drive the next move.
Protect privacy: Follow ethical standards and confidentiality requirements at every step.
Better data in, better decisions out.
How to Display Epidemiology Analysis Skills on Your Resume
7. Electronic Health Records (EHR)
EHRs are real-time digital charts that store histories, meds, allergies, labs, imaging, and care plans. They support coordination, safety, and continuity—vital in community settings with many touchpoints.
Why It's Important
Accurate information at the right moment reduces errors, prevents duplication, and speeds referrals. Coordination becomes simpler and safer.
How to Improve Electronic Health Records (EHR) Skills
Streamline workflows: Customize templates and shortcuts for common visits and care plans.
Advance interoperability: Use standards (such as FHIR) and health information exchanges to see the full picture.
Engage patients: Encourage portal use, secure messaging, and access to visit summaries.
Use data for population health: Build registries, run reports, and target outreach for at-risk groups.
Protect privacy: Follow HIPAA, apply role-based access, and refresh training regularly.
When the record works for you, care moves faster and safer.
How to Display Electronic Health Records (EHR) Skills on Your Resume
8. Telehealth Proficiency
Telehealth proficiency means delivering education, triage, chronic care, and follow-up through video, phone, and secure messaging—reliably, safely, and with a human touch.
Why It's Important
It widens access, speeds response, and supports people who can’t easily travel. Continuity without the commute.
How to Improve Telehealth Proficiency Skills
Sharpen technical skills: Master your platform, backup plans, and troubleshooting basics.
Refine “webside” manner: Eye contact with the camera, structured agendas, clear next steps.
Improve patient readiness: Pre-visit checklists, device tests, plain-language instructions.
Mind regulations: Follow privacy rules and state licensure requirements; document consent.
Keep learning: Short courses and drills keep skills current as tools evolve.
Good telehealth feels easy for the patient and effortless for the nurse—because the prep work was solid.
How to Display Telehealth Proficiency Skills on Your Resume
9. Multicultural Competency
Multicultural competency is the skill of delivering care that respects culture, language, beliefs, and lived experience—without assumptions—so people feel seen and safe.
Why It's Important
It improves communication, trust, adherence, and outcomes. It also helps close persistent health gaps.
How to Improve Multicultural Competency Skills
Learn continuously: Study cultural health beliefs and local demographics; stay curious.
Check your biases: Practice self-reflection and seek feedback.
Use qualified interpreters: Avoid ad hoc interpretation; confirm understanding.
Honor preferences: Ask about decision-makers, rituals, diet, and care expectations.
Engage communities: Partner with cultural leaders and organizations.
Apply CLAS principles: Align practice with culturally and linguistically appropriate services.
Respect builds bridges; bridges improve care.
How to Display Multicultural Competency Skills on Your Resume
10. Crisis Intervention
Crisis intervention is swift, focused support during acute stress or danger—stabilize, ensure safety, and connect to ongoing care.
Why It's Important
Early, skilled intervention prevents harm, reduces long-term fallout, and restores a sense of control.
How to Improve Crisis Intervention Skills
Train regularly: De-escalation, trauma-informed care, suicide risk assessment, and safety planning.
Coordinate care: Build tight links with mental health teams, EMS, shelters, and social services.
Map resources: Keep an updated list of crisis centers, respite options, and rapid-access clinics.
Use technology wisely: Tele-crisis visits and rapid check-ins maintain safety nets.
Promote awareness: Share how to access help, including the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline in the U.S.
Preparation turns chaos into a plan.
How to Display Crisis Intervention Skills on Your Resume
11. Case Management
Case management is the art and structure of coordinating services—medical, behavioral, and social—to match what a person truly needs, when they need it.
Why It's Important
It reduces fragmentation, improves outcomes, and saves time for patients and providers alike.
How to Improve Case Management Skills
Use EHR and care plans well: Shared, up-to-date plans reduce duplication and confusion.
Center the patient: Co-create goals; include caregivers; respect preferences.
Address social needs: Screen for housing, food, transportation; make closed-loop referrals.
Communicate across teams: Regular huddles and clear handoffs prevent gaps.
Track outcomes: Monitor utilization, adherence, and patient-reported results; adjust as needed.
Standardize pathways: Evidence-based protocols keep quality consistent while allowing personalization.
Good case management feels seamless to the patient—even when the system isn’t.
How to Display Case Management Skills on Your Resume
12. Health Assessment
Health assessment gathers and analyzes data on a community’s health status, assets, and risks to set priorities and guide action.
Why It's Important
It turns scattered signals into a clear plan—what to tackle first, what to build next, and how to measure progress.
How to Improve Health Assessment Skills
Observe broadly: Clinical signs matter, and so do housing, air quality, food access, and safety.
Stay current: Use validated tools and up-to-date indicators.
Engage residents: Listening sessions, surveys, and participatory mapping reveal realities data alone misses.
Leverage technology: Secure data collection, simple dashboards, and geospatial views speed insight.
Work across sectors: Public health, schools, transportation, and housing all hold pieces of the puzzle.
Reassess regularly: Update priorities as conditions shift, including climate and seasonal factors.
Assessment isn’t a one-off report; it’s a living foundation for a Community Health Improvement Plan that evolves with the community.
How to Display Health Assessment Skills on Your Resume
