the community's rcsc. 1rch activities. Research in communit y health serves a number of purposes, among whid1 ore: (1) improve our understanding of elicnts and their specific contexts; (2) provide data needed frn· prugrnn 1 and policy development and cvnl LL. atfon; (31 supprn-t advoeacy and lobbying for speeilk pc. llicies; (4) improve the delivery of l1ealth service. s and implementation of existing progr:uns; (5) improve cos·t-effectiveness of program s; and, (6) project a good image of nurses. Advocacy and politica l action Advocac y is an ethic;il and professiona J responsibility. The American Nurses Association (2007, i. n Clark, 2008:6) defines advocacy as.. the act of pleading or argu. ing in favor of a cause, idc:-1. or policy 011 someone e'lse's behalf, with a focus on developing the community, system, individual, or family's capacity to ple;;id their own c;rnse or act on their own behalf'. Policy advoc:ac..-y is a very important modality for influencin g the l,eallh of people (Williams, 1991:619). Community hca Jth nurses arc in a very strategic position to speak on issues that directly and indirectly impact on the health of tho community. But in doing :advocacy, they uphol<l a c Jien L"s nutonomy, which means that they reserve for their clients the right Lo make thei. r· c,wn c. lcc:i. sions. They just Lr;rnslate am] ::u-ticulute tlie problems, aspirntions. he,alth and illness cxpcdcnces, the perspectives and positions of their clients, particular ly those who are vulnerab le, to health planners and policy makers, until such time that the clients can do these for LJ1emselves. Nol too long ago, the preval1ent view among nurses is that politics is outside the concern of nurses and it is "unetl1ical'0 lo engage in political actions. Politics, then, was associated with '·activists" wlio were viewed negatively by 1nany nurses. Today nurses getting involved witl, politics are uol frowned upon anymore. Being politic HI means spealdng up and rneeti. og,v;th politicians. Nurses should a Jways be adcquutcly prcpared-witl1 accnrate ancl up-to-date data/infor mati(ln, researches and sound 1. 1ss11111ptions and reasoning; better if they have well-written and engaging position papers. Political nclion requires a good working knowledge on the workings of tbe political system and the dynamics of policy-maki ng both at the local and national levels. COMMUNITY HEALTH NURSING IN THE PHILIPPINES Musi of the c C)mmun ity hea Jtb nurses in the Philippines work in hea Jth centers as . public healt J1 nurses, industries/companies as occupational health nurses (company nurses) and school nurses. Few of them work with non-government organizations (NGOs). The roles and functions of nurses are defined by the nursing law (RA 9173) and standards that are developed by professional associations such as the Philippine Nurses Association (PNA), Occupational Mealth Nurses Association of the Philippines (OHNAP) an<l the National League of Philippin e Government Nurses (NLPGN) and agenc. ies such as tbe Departm ent of Education (Dep E<l). 39 