Purpose: To identify factors that can strengthen the professional identity of municipal public health nurses.

Method: A questionnaire survey was conducted targeting public health nurses working in municipalities without health centres across six prefectures of the Kanto region. The survey included the professional identity scale for public health nurses (Negishi et al., 2010)，along with personal, external, physical, and psychological factors. A total of 400 copies of questionnaire were distributed to 36 municipalities that had agreed to cooperate. A bivariate analysis was conducted, followed by a multiple regression analysis (stepwise method).

Results: Of the 195 copies collected (response rate of 48.8％)，180 (valid response rate of 92.3％) were analysed. The mean score on the scale was 134.9 (SD±19.3)，and R² adjusted for the degree of freedom was 0.469. The multiple regression analysis showed significant associations for five items: “strong motivation for public health nurses activities,” “conviction as public health nurses,” “work position,” “marital status,” and “overall life satisfaction.”

Discussion: It was inferred that municipal public health nurses can strengthen their professional identity when they realise that their professional and personal lives are integrated. This integration can be fostered by increasing their motivation and conviction through work reflection and training sessions, personal growth through interactions with various people, and fulfilment of work responsibilities to enrich their lives.

Objectives: This study aimed to identify the challenges public health nurses (PHNs) encounter when responsible for families with developmental disabilities.

Methods: Eleven public health nurses in charge of developmental support participated in semi-structured interviews. Data analysis was conducted descriptively to identify the challenges in supporting families with developmental disabilities.

Results: Six categories are identified. In addition to the challenge of providing direct support to families, such as “difficulty of providing support according to the family’s sense of distress and the stage of acceptance,” there are also issues in ensuring a support environment, such as “the lack of social resources such as professionals and specialized organizations cannot be compensated,” “it is necessary to supplement communication between family members and related parties,” “it is difficult to get support from the people around them,” “there is a difficulty in making comprehensive family support work throughout adulthood and beyond,” and “there is a difficulty in building a collaborative system.”

Discussion: Through direct and indirect support, PHNs recognized the lack of social resources and the challenges of communication between family members and related parties, as well as the issue of comprehensive family support beyond adulthood. In order to support the families of children with developmental disabilities, it was suggested that it is necessary to build a collaborative system that includes in-service education and specialized support for those involved, as well as support from people around them.

Objective: To investigate residents violence behaviors as experienced by public health nurses during their duties as well as to clarify the perceptions, feelings, thoughts, and coping related to violence among public health nurses.

Methods: This was an unregistered survey of public health nurses working in Prefecture A. First, the study researcher explained the definition of violence and 20 specific acts of violence,to the public health nurses, They then described their experiences of violence and their perceptions, feelings, thoughts, and coping to violence in the past year.

Results: The questionnaire was distributed to 86 respondents, of which a total of 64 responded. Approximately 70％ of public health nurses experienced violent behavior from residents. A χ² test was conducted with these participants on the extent to which public health nurses perceived acts of violence as violence, and the type and location of violence. The results showed that public health nurses did not often recognize the acts as violence, that the types of violence were “verbal violence” “harassment, intimidation, etc.”, and that the most common type of violence was “telephone counseling”.

Discussion: Public health nurses are risk of violence due to the nature of their work, and their perception of and decision-making to respond to violence is influenced by nurses’ specific emotional rules. There is a need for a forum for sharing information within the workplace on risk assessment, violence prevention measures, support for the psychological impact of health professionals and measures to prevent recurrence.

Objective: This study investigated how mothers of young adults with high functioning pervasive developmental disorder (HFPDD) obtained public support after their children encountered life crises related to employment.

Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with five mothers of young adults with HFPDD who obtained public support, and the data were analyzed using the Modified Grounded Theory Approach (M-GTA).

Results: The process begins with a mother who harbors strong concerns about the possibility of a disability in her child who is struggling at work. Subsequently, the mother finds herself confronting a child in a crisis, leading her to recognize the necessity of saving her child. The search for support proves challenging, and the mother grapples with the frustration of futile searching for solutions, but she eventually finds a health professional whom she can trust as a collaborative companion. With this trust as a foundation, the mother can shift the focus toward support away from the disability itself. Then, the mother collaboratively resolves with the health professional any misunderstandings with other family members regarding the necessity of support. Ultimately, the mother and child find their way to obtaining public support.

Discussion: The key for the mothers of young adult with HFPDD to obtain public support is to find health professionals who can be trusted as collaborative companions. It is also essential that mothers can easily reach the health professionals without being frustrated by futile searching for solutions. Health professionals should collaborate with the mothers to resolve family conflicts regarding the necessity of obtaining public support.

Objective: This study examined the mutual-aid activities and thoughts of middle-aged and older residents caring for children in a detached housing complex located in a hilly suburban area. This study aimed to suggest supporting mutual-aid activities as community development.

Methods: We conducted interviews with individuals aged over 50 years who lived in housing complex X in City A. The data were analyzed using qualitative descriptive methods.

Results: The sample comprised 12 participants（mean age＝66.3 years）. Three categories of mutual-aid activities were generated: building familiarity and trust through repeated greetings and watching over the children; providing conditions that allow children to engage in desired activities ; passing on skills and experience to the children. Furthermore, six categories of thoughts on mutual-aid activities were generated: hoping for appropriate support from residents’ associations and local governments; hoping to restart previous activities with volunteers; wanting to promote community development activities that bring out the housing complexes’ attractiveness.

Discussion: Mutual-aid activities while caring for children are based on the developmental task of Generativity in middle age. These activities require positive responses from children and encouragement from their parents. The participants hoped to maintain the bonds formed through mutual-aid activities and rebuild previous connections with acquaintances, while aiming for activities that contribute to community development. Collaboration with nearby schools and the local government could help to achieve these goals. The local government should respect residents’ potential, engage in continuous dialogue with them, and provide support to promote community development.