Primary Health Care Nurses and Their Suspicion of Child Abuse: The Importance of Relationship-building With Families and Interdisciplinary Networks
Date
Authors
Platt, Susan
Zambas, Shelaine
Spence, Deb
Cook, Catherine
Supervisor
Item type
Journal Article
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Volume Title
Publisher
CSIRO Publishing
Abstract
Introduction There is a knowledge gap around the experiences of New Zealand (NZ) primary health care (PHC) registered nurses and nurse practitioners when working with children whom they suspect are being abused or neglected. Aim This study aimed to explore what PHC nurses experience when building and nurturing family and interdisciplinary relationships amidst a suspicion that a child is being abused or neglected. Methods Using contacts and snowballing to recruit participants, 13 PHC nurses working in the Auckland region were interviewed using semi-structured interviews. Gadamerian hermeneutics guided the analysis, with other philosophers drawn on to deepen the analysis. Results Relationship building is precarious due to trust issues, tensions around reporting, and complex power relations. Nurses are central to coordinating interprofessional care. Discussion Building relationships with families, children, and colleagues is fundamental to child protection. It is only by knowing what building and nurturing relationships is like amidst suspicion of child abuse or neglect that those whom nurses work with can understand what this work is like.Description
Keywords
4203 Health Services and Systems, 4205 Nursing, 42 Health Sciences, Violence Research, Child Abuse and Neglect Research, Pediatric, Behavioral and Social Science, 8.1 Organisation and delivery of services, 7.1 Individual care needs, 3 Good Health and Well Being, 1110 Nursing, 1117 Public Health and Health Services, 4203 Health services and systems
Source
Journal of Primary Health Care, ISSN: 1172-6156 (Print), CSIRO Publishing. doi: 10.1071/hc25016
DOI
Publisher's version
Rights statement
© 2025 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing on behalf of The Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND)