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Conflicts Experienced by Public Health Nurses in Caring for Families in Japan

Toshie Miyazaki, MN, PHN, RN1, Junko Omori, MS, PHN, RN2, Noriko Kato, PHN, RN3, Kiyomi Asahara, PhD, PHN, RN1, Masako Sakai, MN, PHN, RN1, Hiroko Nagae, MN, PHN, RN1, and Yumiko Momose, MA, RN4. (1) Community health nursing, St. Luke's College of Nursing, 10-1, Akashi-cho,Chuoku, Tokyo, 104-0044, Japan, 81-3-5550-2272, t_miyazaki@slcn.ac.jp, (2) Doctoral student, St. Luke's College of Nursing, 10-1, Akashi-cho,Chuoku, Tokyo, 104-0044, Japan, (3) Master's student, St. Luke's College of Nursing, 10-1, Akashi-cho,Chuoku, Tokyo, 104-0044, Japan, (4) School of Health Sciences, Shinshu University, 3-1-1 Asahi, Matsumoto-shi, Nagano, 960-1295, Japan

Introduction: There is increasing awareness of problems in interdisciplinary collaboration for community care in Japan. Our purpose was to clarify conflicts experienced by public health nurses (PHNs) in caring for families in Japan. Methods: Sixty-six PHNs who worked at health and welfare departments of municipalities in a prefecture responded to a questionnaire that included forced-choice and open-ended questions. The data were analyzed using statistics and content analysis. Results: Almost half of PHNs have sometimes felt conflict and experienced difficulties. The conflict situations were characterized by clients who had many problems, for example, planning care for a pregnant woman who had a mental disorder and had a risk of maltreating her new-born baby. The differences in obligations, priorities, approaches and understanding of roles between PHNs and other professionals depended on the other's profession. The professionals who had different ideas from PHNs included physicians (22%), social workers (17%), care managers (11%), nursery school teachers (11%), and others (39%). Conclusions: The cases in which PHNs are involved are very complex, and PHN involvement continues over long periods; many other professionals are also involved with those clients and families. It is necessary that all develop better systems and approaches to collaboration, including PHNs.

Learning Objectives:

  • At the conclusion of the session, the participant (learner) in this session will be able to

    Presenting author's disclosure statement:
    I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.

    Nursing and Global Health

    The 132nd Annual Meeting (November 6-10, 2004) of APHA