Abstract
Purpose : The purpose of this study was 1) to examine the actual situation of public health nurses (PHN) in Japan coping with child abuse prevention and 2) to discuss the issues that they are expected to work on in the future. Methods : The subjects of this study are PHNs working in 120 municipalities of "A" prefecture. I conducted this survey by sending a questionnaire to a chief PHN of each municipality (total of 120 PHNs) and collecting them by mail. Results : The chief PHN of the 71 municipalities responded. When they found families anxious about child abuse, they took particular notice of "emotions and appearances of mothers and their children," "position in a family and a community of mothers and their children," "living conditions in a family," "history of health and life of mothers and their children," and "information from relevant organizations." The cases of child abuses and suspicions were increasing between 2000 and 2004, of which 35.0%〜51.5% turned into a better situation. Discussion : The chief PHSs identified from various information some suspicious families for child abuse. The child abuse cases and suspicions that the PHNs engaged in changed for the better, which can be regarded as the important point to evaluate the PHNs' activities for child abuse prevention. The result indicated that PHNs needed to establish a rapport with local residents, to improve their skill for find about the child abuse cases and suspicions, and the municipalities needed to strengthen the support system of maternal and child health.
