Observational studyJournal of advanced nursing2026
Public Health Nurses' Time Allocation in Local Government Nursing Settings: A Self-Reported Prospective Time Study.
Observational study in Journal of advanced nursing, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed.
- Public Health Nurses' Time Allocation in Local Government Nursing Settings: A Self-Reported Prospective Time Study.Journal of advanced nursing · 2026Observational
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors.
Funding
Abstract
aimTo clarify how public health nurses allocate their time across various tasks and compare time-use patterns between prefectural and municipal public health nurses in Japan, where distinct administrative mandates define their roles.
designA self-reported, prospective time study.
methodsPublic health nurses from two municipalities and one prefecture recorded their daily practices and time allocations using Kintone. Time allocation differences by administrative level and job position were analysed using linear mixed-effects models.
resultsOverall, 121 participants contributed 9502 person-days of data. Participants spent an average of 463.6 min/workday on work-related activities. Municipal public health nurses dedicated more time to application paperwork (64.0 min), health examinations (57.6 min), and individual coordination (48.3 min). Prefectural public health nurses allocated more time to business management and organisational operations (69.0 min) and traveliing, particularly in rural contexts. Managers spent less time on direct care and more on administrative tasks.
conclusionThis study provides the first quantitative, self-reported evidence of task distribution among public health nurses across administrative levels and positions. The findings reflect structural differences in role expectations and underscore the need to reallocate workloads to better align with each level's mandate. IMPLICATIONS FOR THE PROFESSION: Task prioritisation, information and communication technology tool integration, and administrative support are essential in optimising public health nurses' contributions to community health. These strategies can reduce non-clinical workload and enable public health nurses to focus on high-impact, value-added public health services that promote health equity. IMPACT: This study closes a longstanding gap by quantifying PHNs' time allocation, revealing the hidden burden of administrative work, and providing critical insights for workforce planning and sustainable public health service delivery. REPORTING
methodThis study adhered to the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology guideline. PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: No Patient or Public Involvement.
trial registrationUMIN Clinical Trials Registry; UMIN000051509 (https://center6.umin.ac.jp/cgi-open-bin/ctr/ctr_his_list.cgi?recptno=R000058761; August 1, 2023).
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.