Prospective nurses' appraisals of screening for child neglect in primary care settings

Screening for child neglect in primary care settings is a well-recognized, though largely untapped, resource in the campaign to prevent this pervasive childhood morbidity. Using a contemporary cognitive appraisal model as a conceptual guide, this study evaluated 71 upper-level undergraduate nursing students' thoughts about their future professional responsibility to screen children and families for child neglect. Seventy-one upper-level undergraduate nursing students voluntarily and independently completed a brief, 10-minute survey during a regularly scheduled class meeting. Data showed that participants perceived screening for neglect as important to and consistent with their future professional objectives. In addition, participants reported confidence in their ability to screen for neglect and to better the lives of children and families through universal screening procedures. In contrast, the majority of participants doubted their ability to emotionally tolerate the psychologic burden of routinely assessing caregivers' ability to nurture and protect their offspring. Although the majority of participants reported some degree of anxiety and a substantial minority reported some degree of hopelessness about screening for neglect, most were hopeful that this challenge would yield personal and professional benefits. Overall, data suggested that participants were highly motivated to invest cognitive and emotional resources in learning more about screening for child neglect in primary care settings.