Experiences of public health nurses in remote communities during the Great East Japan Earthquake

Aim: Public health nurses (PHNs) provide services to residents during disasters. Understanding PHNs’ experiences in affected areas could redefine PHNs’ roles in public health at a community level and provide valuable suggestions to local government organizations for future mass casualty events. This study aimed to reveal the experiences of local government PHNs working in a rural affected area after the Great East Japan Earthquake. Methods: An ethnographic approach was used. Data collected from semi-structured interviews, participant observation, and statistical documents, yielded in-depth information regarding the experiences of seven PHNs who were survivors and continued working after the disaster. Results: Three themes were identified; namely, “a local PHN rooted in our town,” “carrying out responsibilities after confirming the family’s safety,” and “being ‘a survivor’ while also not forgetting their roles as ‘a local PHN rooted in our town.’” PHNs who were not at their workplaces during the disaster felt guilty about being unable to help in the same manner as their colleagues. Information about the safety of their families enabled the PHNs to perform under pressure. Moreover, they could not forget their responsibilities, even though they were also survivors. Conclusion: The experiences of PHNs in the affected areas are important in order to understand the combination of being a professional, a family member, and a survivor, all at once. It is crucial to elicit PHNs’ feelings through self-disclosure, so that they can receive appropriate support (based on gender and their individual situation) from relief personnel.