Greeting statement

Abstract

It is my great pleasure to convey sincere and cordial greetings to nursing professionals and nursing scientists around the world and to members of the Japan Academy of Nursing Science and their friends and colleagues on the occasion of the publication of the first issue the Japan Journal of Nursing Science (JJNS), the English-language journal of the Japan Academy of Nursing Science (JANS). The August 2004 inaugural issue of the Japan Journal of Nursing Science, the first-ever English-language journal published by a nursing academy in Japan, is a milestone in the development of nursing in Japan. The Japan Academy of Nursing Science, the oldest academic nursing organization in Japan, was established in 1981 by the allied nursing departments from six universities comprising the Japan Association of Nursing Programs in Universities (JANPU). Now, JANS is a registered member of the Science Council of Japan, the most prestigious and respected organization of academic organizations in Japan. And, membership is over 4200, reflecting the incredible growth in university-based education for nursing, the development of Masters and Doctoral programs throughout Japan, and the growth in research and international communication about nursing scholarship by nurses and others in Japan and around the world. Publication of the English-language journal, one of the internationally focused goals of JANS, has been long awaited. This achievement is the result of enormous time and effort of all the JANS members. However, my special thanks go to Professor William L. Holzemer (University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA) who readily took on the task of Editor-in-Chief and who has always been a reliable and supportive consultant to Japanese nursing professionals, and a member of JANS since 1991. Commitment by the international publisher, Blackwell Publishing Asia, to the project gives us the advantage of its expertise and reach. Moreover, great interest in publishing in the Journal and hard work by associate editors and reviewers made it possible for us to present scholarly manuscripts in this epoch-making first issue of JJNS. I strongly believe that our Journal will play an important role in contributing to the development and exchange of academic nursing knowledge by publishing current scholarship from Japan and around the world. The goal of JANS is to create and organize nursing academic resources, to enhance dissemination of nursing knowledge, to encourage exchange of nursing scholarship and thereby to promote academic development of nursing science for the benefit of the health and welfare of people. The Journal represents our newest English-language venture; in 1992, we sponsored our first international nursing research conference with English as the language of the conference. This year, JANS presents its fifth International Nursing Research Conference. The conference will be held in Fukushima, Japan from Sunday 29 August to Tuesday 31 August 2004, with the main theme being ‘Nursing Phenomena and Research Designs – Search for New Research Methodology.’ Your presentations and participation at the conference will be warmly welcomed. During this year, my last year as Chair of the Board of JANS, I am determined to further strengthen the fundamental resources of our Academy as well as to support the publication of JJNS. This commitment, along with the resilience and support of the JANS members and their internationally active friends, places our Academy at the doorstep of a bright future. Once again, I would like to express appreciation for the constant assistance from each and every member of JANS and its colleagues around the world.