This text covers practice from the aspiring health visitor to the higher level practitioner viewpoints. It takes a wide-ranging approach to practice. The book reflects the changes in Health Visitor practice brought about by community care legislation and the educational changes ushered in by PREP. It reflects the growing role of the HV in relation to contemporary problems such as alcohol and substance misuse, environmental pollution, and aggression and violence. In short, the book defines the new status of the health visitor as a specialist practitioner, and explores the less easily defined area of advanced practice.