Conectar
To explore how public health nurses at child and family health clinics work to prevent maltreatment and the experiences of public health nurses in the maltreatment prevention efforts.
Child maltreatment is a serious societal issue with major consequences. Preventive efforts are increasing and have broad political support. A key objective of the child and family health clinic services is to prevent, identify, and stop maltreatment, abuse, and neglect. National clinical guidelines outline, in general terms, how such work should be conducted. However, limited research exists on how public health nurses prevent maltreatment and the effectiveness of their methods.
A qualitative and explorative design was used, based on semi-structured interviews with 14 public health nurses conducted as part of the project ‘Public Health Nurses in Child and Family Clinics' Role in Preventing and Detecting Child Maltreatment’ at Oslo Metropolitan University. The interviews were carried out between August and November 2021. We used qualitative content analysis with an inductive approach to analyse the data.
Three main categories were developed: 1. Structure and system: weaving prevention into daily practice; 2. To dare and endure: a negotiation of courage and understanding, and 3. To empower and uphold: the goal of strengthening and supporting parents. The results show the importance of early intervention, barriers to discussing maltreatment with parents, and the importance of building trust and empowering parents.
Preventing maltreatment is a key part of public health nurses' clinical work, focusing on early risk identification and parental guidance. While building trust with families is prioritised, structural, resource, and guideline-related challenges persist.
This study provides knowledge about Norwegian public health nurses clinical work with child maltreatment at the child and family health clinics, which can serve as a valuable foundation for further research as well as for collaborating services.
EQUATOR guidelines were followed, using the COREQ checklist.
No patient or public contribution.
Integrating evidence-based interventions in services by midwives and public health nurses (PHNs) has the potential to improve public health. Attitudes and individual readiness to change can influence the implementation of evidence-based interventions, but there is limited research in community nursing and maternity and child health care services (MCHCs).
To examine attitudes toward evidence-based practice and readiness to change in midwives and PHNs in MCHCs before implementing the “Mamma Mia” intervention (an evidence-based intervention to improve maternal mental health).
A survey-based, multisite cross-sectional study following the STrengthening the Reporting of OBservational studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) guideline. Data were collected from 190 midwives and PHNs from 42 MCHCs across 33 municipalities in Norway (2021–2022). Six subscales of the Evidence-Based Practice Attitude Scale (EBPAS) assessed attitudes toward evidence-based practice, and the Brief Individual Readiness for Change Scale (BIRCS) measured individual readiness. Descriptive and inferential statistics using frequency tables, Pearson correlation coefficient, and linear regression were used for data analysis. Open-ended responses were analyzed using content analysis.
Sixty-five midwives and 125 PHNs completed the baseline survey (mean age 46.8, all female). Mean EBPAS subscales scores were 2.99 to 3.58 (SD = 0.46–0.77) mean BIRCS score was 3.16 (SD = 0.49) (possible range 0–4). Scores were slightly higher than typically reported in clinical settings, with no significant differences based on demographics (all p-values ≥ 0.166). EBPAS subscores and the BIRCS score showed a moderate positive association. The most frequently reported positive factors influencing readiness were “enhanced care and positive gain” (42.6%), “organizational support” (26.3%), and “receiving training and implementation support” (23.2%). Negative factors included “time constraints and workload” (58.4%), and “research participation and implementation demands” (27.9%).
Midwives and PHNs showed positive attitudes toward EBP and a high degree of individual readiness. Our findings align with previous research highlighting barriers such as time constraints and workload, offering insights to inform strategies for more effective EBP adoption and implementation. These results can guide nurse managers, administrators, policymakers, professional associations, implementers, and intervention developers in enhancing EBP integration into practice.
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