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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Yumiko Momose, RN, PhD¹, Kiyomi Asahara, PHN, RN, PhD², Maki Umeda, PHN, RN, MS², Junko Omori, RN, PHN, DNSc², Hiroko Nagae, RN, PHN, MS², Noriko Kato, PHN, RN, MS³, Toshie Miyazaki, PHN, RN, MS⁴, and Masako Sakai, RN, PHN, MS². (1) Grerontological Nursing, Aichi Prefectural college of Nursing &Health, Tohgoku,Kamishidmi, Moriyama-ku,Nagoya, Japan, 81-52-736-1401, momose@aichi-nurs.ac.jp, (2) Community Health Nursing, St.Luke's College of Nursing, 10-1, Akashi-cho, Chuo-ku,Tokyo, 104-0044, Japan, (3) Health Service Bureau, Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, 1-2-2 kasumigaseki, chiyodaku,Tokyo, Japan, (4) School of Nursing, Toho University, 4-16-20, Omori-Nishi, Ota-ku,Tokyo, 143-0015, Japan

Introduction: Japanese Public Health Nurses (PHNs) have had difficulties in dealing with ethical issues. For better community nursing practice, it is necessary to characterize these ethical issues and to clarify how PHNs deal with these issues. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to describe how PHNs deal with ethical issues stemming from conflicts between clients and their families. Method: The sample consisted of 144 PHNs who worked at health and welfare departments of municipalities in a prefecture. Forty-five nurses responded to a questionnaire that included open-ended questions. The data were analyzed using content analysis. Results: Most PHNs had difficulty in dealing with conflict. The diseases and problems of clients (such as mental disorders, physical impediments, dementia, obsessive compulsive disorder, developmental disabilities, autism, cancer, and problems due to domestic violence) determined the nature of the conflict. PHNs dealt with these situations in the following ways: 1) Strengthening community support networks by communicating and collaborating with other professionals, 2) assisting the clients and their families by providing them with sufficient information about community and hospital care to make decisions, 3) communicating their clients' feelings to their families, and 4) others. Conclusions: This study shows that Japanese PHNs have difficulty dealing with a variety of ethical issues. Therefore, development of a new program that focuses on community nursing is vital to the education of PHNs and nursing students in Japan.

Learning Objectives: