著者

Akizumi Tsutsumi

出版者

Japan Society for Occupational Health

雑誌

Environmental and Occupational Health Practice (ISSN:24344931)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.2, no.1, pp.2020-0008-OP, 2020 (Released:2020-06-30)

参考文献数

40

被引用文献数

8 11

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Workstyle reform for Japanese doctors is a priority of Japanese labor policy. Factors influencing this include the low birthrate and longevity of the population and the long working hours experienced by Japanese workers. Long working hours imperil the health of doctors and create discord between their work and other life roles. The Japanese government enacted measures to promote workstyle reform for doctors, including a provision that capped legal overtime work. The limit was set to sustain healthcare services in the community. However, the allowed level of overtime is substantially higher than the so-called “line of karoshi” at which point worker compensation for work-related medical disorders is approved. Despite limited research, several measures can be considered to reduce health risks of overworked doctors, such as recommending psychological detachment from clinical work and maintaining work-life balance. Doctors should realize that self-care is a professional imperative. Organizational efforts from public administration entities or hospitals are required to secure the health of doctors. The number of surgeons and obstetricians has not recently increased. Gender role stereotyping has encouraged male Japanese doctors to work long hours and makes it difficult for female doctors to continue their professional life after childbirth. Without reforming the workstyle and protecting the health of doctors, younger workers, particularly women, are liable to avoid entering medical professions. To ensure the provision of good healthcare, it is necessary to change traditional values and improve the work environment. Academics in occupational fields should produce evidence that will help improve Japanese labor policies.

著者

Mako Iida Natsu Sasaki Reiko Kuroda Kanami Tsuno Norito Kawakami

出版者

Japan Society for Occupational Health

雑誌

Environmental and Occupational Health Practice (ISSN:24344931)

巻号頁・発行日

pp.2021-0006-OA, (Released:2021-06-19)

参考文献数

37

被引用文献数

6

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Objectives: This 2-month cohort study aimed to investigate the changing prevalence and factors associated with COVID-19-related workplace bullying among the general workers in Japan. Methods: A baseline survey was conducted of 4,120 full-time workers at Time 1 (March 2020) and they were invited to a follow-up survey at Time 2 (May 2020) after the outbreak of COVID-19 in Japan. The prevalence of COVID-19-related workplace bullying was compared between Time 1 and Time 2 by using McNemar's test. Multiple logistic regression analysis was conducted to investigate the associations between occupation (health care and non-health care workers), socioeconomic status, living in areas under the national emergency announcement, workplace measures against COVID-19, occupational class, chronic physical comorbidities, chronic mental comorbidities, and COVID-19-related workplace bullying at Time 2, adjusting for that at Time 1. Results: A total of 1,421 responded to the survey at Time 2. Data from 996 respondents after excluding 36 who retired during the follow-up were analyzed. The prevalence of COVID-19-related workplace bullying increased more than double from Time 1 (2.8%) to Time 2 (6.5%). Being a manual worker (OR=3.80), having higher education (OR=2.37), and having chronic physical comorbidity (OR=2.11) was significantly associated with the COVID-19-related workplace bullying at Time 2. Conclusions: COVID-19-related workplace bullying increased during the outbreak of COVID-19 in Japan. A lower-class occupation (manual workers) and having chronic physical comorbidity may be associated with greater victimization of COVID-19-related workplace bullying, while those with high educational attainment may be more sensitive to it.

著者

Natsu Sasaki Reiko Kuroda Kanami Tsuno Norito Kawakami

出版者

Japan Society for Occupational Health

雑誌

Environmental and Occupational Health Practice (ISSN:24344931)

巻号頁・発行日

pp.2020-0007-OA, (Released:2020-06-15)

参考文献数

25

被引用文献数

19

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Objectives: The aim of the study was to investigate the number of workplace measures implemented to respond to the COVID-19 epidemic reported by employees and their association with company size and industry among employees in Japan. Methods: A cross-sectional online questionnaire survey was conducted of full-time employees in Japan from March 19–22, 2020. Questions were about announcements by the company of measures taken and 23 items of workplace measures. Associations of company size and industry with the announcements and the number of workplace measures were analyzed. Results: The final sample consisted of 1,379 respondents. The mean number of implemented preventive measures for COVID-19 among 23 items was 11.2 (standard deviation, 5.9). Proportions of respondents who reported receiving announcement of measures taken was high (79.9%), as were proportions of respondents reporting implementation of some of the workplace measures, while the less than half reported implementation of most of the workplace measures. The announcement of measures and the number of workplace measures that were implemented in the workplace were generally lower/smaller among respondents in smaller companies and in retail, wholesale, and transportation industries. Conclusions: While most respondents reported receiving information about measures by their companies/organizations, it may be a further challenge to implement workplace measures in smaller companies and companies in retail, wholesale, and transportation industries.

著者

Teppei Imai Keisuke Kuwahara Isamu Kabe Yohei Kawasaki Tetsuya Mizoue Seitaro Dohi for the Japan Epidemiology Collaboration on Occupational Health Study Group

出版者

Japan Society for Occupational Health

雑誌

Environmental and Occupational Health Practice (ISSN:24344931)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.2, no.1, pp.2020-0012-CM, 2020 (Released:2020-12-25)

参考文献数

10

著者

Eva Zahradnik Ingrid Sander Olaf Kleinmüller Alexandra Beine Frank Hoffmeyer Albert Nienhaus Monika Raulf

出版者

Japan Society for Occupational Health

雑誌

Environmental and Occupational Health Practice (ISSN:24344931)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.4, no.1, pp.2022-0002-OA, 2022 (Released:2022-12-25)

参考文献数

26

被引用文献数

1

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Objectives: In this study, we applied novel nasal filters to assess animal allergen exposure of veterinary staff during their normal daily routine. Methods: Rhinix nasal filters were worn during work by 94 employees at different veterinary practices and 18 employees at a research institute, who acted as controls representing an animal-free environment. Contact with animals and the activities performed were documented by the study participants using a short questionnaire. Major allergens of cats (Fel d 1), dogs (Can f 1), and domestic mites (DM) were measured using fluorescence enzyme immunoassays. Results: At the practices, Can f 1 was detected in 98%, Fel d 1 in 82%, and DM allergens in 39% of the samples. Allergens were also detected in some control samples (6% for Can f 1, 39% for Fel d 1, and 17% for DM) but in very low concentrations. There was a highly significant difference between allergen levels in veterinary workers who treated at least one cat or dog during the sampling period and those who did not (2.66 vs. 0.70 ng/filter for Can f 1 and 1.01 vs. 0.20 ng/filter for Fel d 1). The amount of sampled Fel d 1 increased significantly with increasing duration of contact with cats. This effect was not observed for Can f 1. Conclusions: The majority of veterinary workers are exposed to dog and cat allergens, even without direct contact with these animals. Rhinix nasal filters may be considered a simple and easily applicable method for monitoring personal allergen exposure.

著者

Keisuke Kakimoto

出版者

Japan Society for Occupational Health

雑誌

Environmental and Occupational Health Practice (ISSN:24344931)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.2, no.1, pp.2020-0016-RA, 2020 (Released:2020-09-25)

参考文献数

40

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Objective: While the workplace wellness program (WWP) has been widely provided around the world, there was little discussion of ethical issues around WWP. This article describes the overview of how ethical issues arise in WWP, and how practitioners, as well as employers, can mitigate these problems. Methods: The author reviewed the literature addressing the ethical issues around WWP and ethical analytic tools, potentially useful for practitioners to improve WWP from ethical perspectives. Results: The ethical issues in WWP were categorized based on the three principles in bioethics: the principle of autonomy, the principle of beneficence/non-maleficence, and the principle of justice. For each category, various ethical concerns have been discussed in previous research, such as autonomous decision-making under financial incentives, the importance of evidence-based intervention, unexpected consequences of health promotion programs, and disparities among workers under WWP. The author also identified several useful tools and approaches, which practitioners can utilize for improving WWP from ethical perspectives. Conclusion: The employers and practitioners are recommended to conduct ethical analysis with multiple stakeholders to improve their WWPs from ethical perspective during the process of program development and implementation.

著者

Kazuaki Abe Russell Sarwar Kabir Yutaka Haramaki

出版者

Japan Society for Occupational Health

雑誌

Environmental and Occupational Health Practice (ISSN:24344931)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.1, no.2, pp.55-60, 2019 (Released:2019-12-28)

参考文献数

15

被引用文献数

3

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Objectives: Stress management for human service professionals remains an international issue. Methods: We conducted a primary prevention program using Dohsa-hou designed to provide early-career nurses with an understanding of stress and physical relaxation skills that can be utilized to reduce negative and increase positive mood states. Results: A total of 56 nurses working at a general hospital in Japan participated in the program. As a result, negative mood states were significantly reduced at post-test from the intervention. Also, vigor as a positive mood state showed a marginal increase compared to pre-test. These findings were largely consistent with a previous study implementing Dohsa-hou movement tasks in a stress management program. Conclusions: Although there were some limitations, this study suggested that the stress management program using Dohsa-hou may be a useful approach for preventing burnout by promoting mood state regulation for nurses.

著者

Matti Isohanni

出版者

Japan Society for Occupational Health

雑誌

Environmental and Occupational Health Practice (ISSN:24344931)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.2, no.1, pp.2020-0010-PR, 2020 (Released:2020-12-25)

参考文献数

28

被引用文献数

1 1

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Objectives: To narratively review the presence and treatments of mental health problems among high-level political leaders. These questions have been noted in few epidemiologically sound studies and in the media. Methods: The literature search was performed and it resulted well-described cases and case series, but lacks properly designed studies focusing on medical issues. Results: High-level political leadership is a high-risk occupation, especially during crises and wartime, but also stressful in modern, democratic society. Leadership positions do not necessary facilitate the early detection of and intervention in mental disorders. In the media, psychiatrists should ensure that leaders with mental disorders are treated in a manner that preserves their dignity. Commonly accepted ethical principles stress that psychiatrists should not make announcements to the media about presumed psychopathology and diagnosis of any individuals. Conclusions: Current top leaders are mostly in midlife and rarely seriously mentally ill, but many are prone to anxiety, depression, addictions or stress-related disorders. The care of these eminent persons presents a clinical challenge that requires experience, clinical skills and multidisciplinary team work, usually within the occupational health system which is familiar with the working conditions and state of health of each patient.

著者

Akiomi Inoue Yuko Kachi Hisashi Eguchi Akihito Shimazu Norito Kawakami Akizumi Tsutsumi

出版者

Japan Society for Occupational Health

雑誌

Environmental and Occupational Health Practice (ISSN:24344931)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.2, no.1, pp.2020-0002-OA, 2020 (Released:2020-06-30)

参考文献数

35

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Objectives: We prospectively examined the combined effect of high stress (i.e., being under great work-related stress), as defined in the Japanese Stress Check Program manual using the Brief Job Stress Questionnaire (BJSQ), and job dissatisfaction on long-term sickness absence lasting 1 month or more. Methods: Participants were 7,343 male and 7,344 female financial service company employees who completed the BJSQ. We obtained personnel records covering a 1-year period to identify employees with long-term sickness absence, which was treated as a dichotomous variable. Participants were classified into four groups (high-stress+dissatisfied, high-stress+satisfied, not high-stress+dissatisfied, and not high-stress+satisfied groups) to calculate the hazard ratios (HRs) of long-term sickness absence for these groups using Cox’s proportional hazard regression analysis. Furthermore, to examine whether the combined effect of high stress and job dissatisfaction is synergistic or additive, we calculated relative excess risk due to interaction (RERI), attributable proportion due to interaction (AP), synergy index (SI), and their 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Results: After adjustment for covariates, the HR of long-term sickness absence was highest among the high-stress+dissatisfied group (HR 6.49; 95% CI, 3.42–12.3) followed by the high-stress+satisfied group (HR 5.01; 95% CI, 1.91–13.1). The combined effect of high stress and job dissatisfaction was additive (95% CIs of RERI and AP included 0 and that of SI included 1). Conclusions: Our findings suggest incorporating high stress with job dissatisfaction improves the predictability of long-term sickness absence. However, employees reporting high stress but satisfaction with their jobs may still at increased risk of developing long-term sickness absence.

著者

Yu Odake Naoto Fukutani Kanako Shimoura Tappei Morino Natsuki Matsumura Niu Qian Yuki Shinohara Kohei Mukaiyama Momoko Nagai-Tanima Tomoki Aoyama

出版者

Japan Society for Occupational Health

雑誌

Environmental and Occupational Health Practice (ISSN:24344931)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.3, no.1, pp.2020-0024-OA, 2021 (Released:2021-06-25)

参考文献数

40

被引用文献数

1

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Objectives: This study aimed to examine the factors for reducing monetary loss due to presenteeism by using a tailored healthcare web-application among office workers with chronic neck pain. Methods: The study was single-arm pre-post comparison study using secondary data of 130 Japanese office workers with chronic neck pain who used a tailored healthcare web-application (web-app) over 12 weeks. This data was obtained from BackTech Inc. (Kyoto, Japan), which manages the healthcare web-app. The primary outcome measure was the monetary loss due to presenteeism based on the quality and quantity method. Secondary outcome measures were intensity of physical symptoms measured by the Visual Analog Scale, frequency of web-app use obtained from the database, and the risk of depression score assessed by the Depression and Suicide Screen. Results: Eighty-six participants were included in the complete-case analysis. Monetary loss due to presenteeism and the risk of depression reduced, while physical symptoms improved significantly (p<0.01) after using the web-app. After covariate adjustment, decrease in neck pain intensity (β=0.25, confidence interval=2.34 to 32.66) and high frequency of web-app use (β=−0.24, confidence interval=−10.29 to −0.63) were significantly associated with a reduction in monetary loss due to presenteeism. Conclusion: Neck pain intensity and frequency of web-app use may be important factors for reducing monetary loss due to presenteeism among office workers with chronic neck pain who used a tailored health care web-app.

著者

Mai Iwanaga Mako Iida Natsu Sasaki Risa Kotake Yasuko Morita Hiroki Asaoka Kyosuke Nozawa Hiroo Iwanaga Norito Kawakami

出版者

Japan Society for Occupational Health

雑誌

Environmental and Occupational Health Practice (ISSN:24344931)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.5, no.1, pp.2022-0026-RA, 2023 (Released:2023-06-25)

参考文献数

34

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Objectives: Work-related subjective well-being (SWB) may be negatively affected by early-life adverse experiences, such as school bullying experience. This study aimed to identify the association between work-related SWB and school bullying experiences. Methods: A systematic review was conducted using five electronic databases to search for published observational studies from inception to May 5th, 2022. Eligibility criteria included the original papers in English, which measured school bullying experiences and work-related SWB (eg, satisfaction, engagement). Eight researchers independently conducted screening and a full-text review. We used the Risk of Bias Assessment tool for Non-randomized Studies to assess the certainty of the evidence. Narrative data were summarized. The study has been registered at UMIN-CTR (UMIN000040513). Results: A total of 6,842 studies were initially searched. We included two cross-sectional studies. Both studies were rated as high risk for bias in exposure measurements and incomplete outcome data. These studies showed conflicting results. One study reported that school bullying was negatively associated with job satisfaction among British lesbian, gay, or bisexual workers; on the other hand, another study reported that school bullying was positively associated with work engagement among Japanese workers. Conclusions: We found limited inconsistent evidence for the association between work-related SWB and school bullying experiences.

著者

Keisuke Nagamoto Naoki Kunugita

出版者

Japan Society for Occupational Health

雑誌

Environmental and Occupational Health Practice (ISSN:24344931)

巻号頁・発行日

pp.2022-0016-OA, (Released:2022-12-20)

参考文献数

31

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Objective: To investigate whether implementing a radiation management safety checklist (RMSC) can improve personnel dosimetry among physicians' dosimeter wearing rate for those performing fluoroscopy. Methods: Initially, we visually inspected whether the physicians were wearing personal dosimeters. Subsequently, during a "time-out" period recommended by the RMSC, the medical worker mutually confirmed whether the personal dosimeters were worn correctly. If errors in personnel dosimetry were noted, verbal recommendations to correct the error and follow double dosimetry were made. Lastly, the physicians' dosimeter wearing rates before and during RMSC implementation were compared and analyzed. Results: Before the measurement period, the personal dosimeter wearing rate among all physicians who perform fluoroscopy at the study center (n=72) was 58.2%; during the measurement period, it reached 80.1% (χ2[2]=21.254, p<0.01, φ=-0.227), indicating that RMSC implementation improved the physician's dosimeter wearing rate. However, 40.1% and 37.9% of the physicians were not registered radiation workers before and during the measurement period, respectively, and RMSC implementation did not significantly improve the registration rate during the study period (χ2[2]=0.349, p=0.554, φ=-0.023). Conclusions: The risk of radiation injury may have been overlooked among physicians involved in fluoroscopy and other routine clinical practices that cause radiation exposure. The investigated medical facilities registered physicians as radiation workers at the individual's discretion. There is an urgent need to develop a radiation management system that mandates the use of personal dosimeters among all physicians at risk of radiation exposure.

著者

Kosuke Sakai Tomohisa Nagata Masako Nagata Yoshihisa Fujino Koji Mori

出版者

Japan Society for Occupational Health

雑誌

Environmental and Occupational Health Practice (ISSN:24344931)

巻号頁・発行日

pp.2021-0021-GP, (Released:2022-03-11)

参考文献数

9

被引用文献数

1

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Objectives: Presenteeism refers to the condition of working while having health problems and can be one of the perspectives to assess the incompatibility between workers and their jobs. The purpose of this survey was to find out what kind of occupational health issues can be detected by occupational physicians' interviews focusing on presenteeism. Methods: We conducted interviews with workers suffering from presenteeism in a food manufacturing company. The Work Functioning impairment scale (WFun) was used as the indicator of presenteeism. We discussed the occupational health issues and the necessity of additional interventions. Results: Thirty-nine workers with WFun score of 21 or higher were interviewed, and we have found nine cases in need of support. The workplace issues were structured into four categories: (i) health problems that are difficult to identify through health checkups, (ii) health problems missed by the stress check program, (iii) health problems caused by workload that cannot be identified by workplace patrols, and (iv) health problems that are not considered because they do not require support. Conclusions: We discovered new workplace issues by interviewing workers suffering from presenteeism.

著者

Juri Matsuoka Rina Minohara Yuko Furuya Kota Fukai Haruna Hirosato Naoto Ito Kiminori Odagami Tomohisa Nagata Masako Nagata Yuichi Kobayashi Koji Mori

出版者

Japan Society for Occupational Health

雑誌

Environmental and Occupational Health Practice (ISSN:24344931)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.3, no.1, pp.2021-0001-FS, 2021 (Released:2021-09-25)

参考文献数

10

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Objectives: To identify what types of information were useful and/or difficult to obtain for occupational physicians during the COVID-19 epidemic, and how information should be provided to help occupational physicians in the event of future outbreaks of emerging infectious diseases. Methods: The list was developed by categorizing information about COVID-19 delivered by researchers to a group of occupational physicians after the COVID-19 outbreak. We created a survey and asked the group about the usefulness and ease of obtaining each type of information. Results: In total, 79.1–100% of the occupational physicians said that each type of information was “Useful”. Information on the nature of the virus; clinical course, testing, and treatment; infection prevention measures; regulations in Japan; immigration restrictions in Japan; and guidelines were all considered useful by more than 95%, as was information about the introduction of information aggregation websites by public institutions, academic societies, experts, and others, and sharing of case studies by information distribution group members. These last two items also had a high percentage of respondents who said that they “only obtained the information because it was distributed this way”. Conclusions: Constructing a system for automatic distribution of information that is useful to occupational physicians and difficult to obtain elsewhere may make it easier for occupational physicians to respond more smoothly to emerging infectious disease outbreaks within a company.

著者

Satoshi Ikeda Hisashi Eguchi Hisanori Hiro Kosuke Mafune Ayako Hino Kayoko Koga Kazumi Nishimura Mitsuyo Nakashima

出版者

Japan Society for Occupational Health

雑誌

Environmental and Occupational Health Practice (ISSN:24344931)

巻号頁・発行日

pp.2021-0012-OA, (Released:2022-01-14)

参考文献数

41

被引用文献数

1

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Objectives: This study aims to clarify whether work engagement mediates the relationship between job resources (i.e., supervisor support, coworker support, and job control) and work-to-family positive spillover (WFPS) for home-visiting nursing staff. Methods: This cross-sectional study surveyed 15 male and 152 female participating home-visit nursing staff across 108 home-visit nursing stations in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. In February 2019, each participant provided informed consent and sociodemographic information, and answered three scales, including the short-form version of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale in Japanese, the Japanese version of the Survey Work-Home Interaction – Nijmegen (J-SWING), and the Job Content Questionnaire (JCQ-22). We evaluated supervisor support, coworker support, and job control as job resources using the JCQ-22's subscale. We then evaluated WFPS using the J-SWING's subscale. The hypothesized model was then tested using structural equation modeling. Results: Job resources were positively related to work engagement among the home-visit nursing staff; in turn, work engagement was positively related to WFPS. Job resources had no significant relationship with WFPS. These results suggest that work engagement mediates the relationship between job resources and WFPS. Conclusions: This study found that job resources were not directly related to WFPS for home-visit nursing staff. However, work engagement mediated the relationship between job resources and WFPS.

著者

Kazuto Kuribayashi Kotaro Imamura Masahito Tokita Akihito Shimazu Norito Kawakami

出版者

Japan Society for Occupational Health

雑誌

Environmental and Occupational Health Practice (ISSN:24344931)

巻号頁・発行日

pp.2019-0020-OA, (Released:2020-03-20)

参考文献数

41

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Objectives: To preliminarily determine the effects of an Internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy program for the stress management of new graduate nurses on improving depressive symptoms and other psychological outcomes using a pre-post experimental design. Methods: A 6-week, six-lesson Internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy program was developed through an extensive interviewing of nurses. The program utilized major cognitive behavioral therapy skills (self-monitoring, cognitive restructuring, assertiveness, problem-solving, and relaxation). We administered the Internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy program to participants who were at 5 months after starting their job. At baseline and post-intervention, we measured the primary outcome of depressive symptoms along with the secondary outcomes of psychological distress, dysfunctional attitude, and knowledge of and self-efficacy for the components of cognitive behavioral therapy. Results: Twenty-three new graduate nurses were recruited, although only 21 actually took part in the program. Twelve (57%) participants completed all six lessons, and about one-third of participants completed less than three lessons. At post-intervention, only 12 of the 21 participants had completed the post-intervention survey. The program failed to show significant intervention effects on depressive symptoms, psychological distress, and dysfunctional attitude, but it did show significant or marginally significant improvements in knowledge of and self-efficacy for most cognitive behavioral therapy components. Conclusions: The relatively low intensity of the program may explain the null findings. This suggests a need for further improvement of the content and mode of delivery. Nevertheless, the program was able to improve knowledge of and self-efficacy for most cognitive behavioral therapy components.

著者

Akizumi Tsutsumi

出版者

Japan Society for Occupational Health

雑誌

Environmental and Occupational Health Practice (ISSN:24344931)

巻号頁・発行日

pp.2020-0020-OP, (Released:2021-02-25)

参考文献数

44

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In Japan, over 6,000 workers commit suicide every year, and the Japanese government has taken several countermeasures to prevent Karoshi (death due to overwork) and mental health disorders among workers. Risk factors for suicide among workers include long working hours, adverse psychosocial job characteristics, economic recession or financial crisis, job insecurity, and workplace harassment. Depressive symptoms are supposed to play a vital role in mediating mechanisms. Owing to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, economic crises continue and seemingly deepen, and the risk of unemployment increases. Workers with low socioeconomic status and who do not enjoy occupational health services are considered vulnerable, and essential workers (including health care workers) require special attention. Little evidence prevails with respect to workplace suicide prevention measures in a population approach, and hence, suicide prevention should be integrated into the existing workplace mental health activities. Although evidence of secondary prevention, such as screening for depression, is scarce for workplace mental health, such measures, including regular psychological counseling, should be applicable during this crisis. Research is thus crucial for preventing suicide in the workplace using surrogate outcomes, such as suicidality, help-seeking, stigma, access to means, and improving workplace support. Prevention of suicide among temporary workers, freelancers, foreign workers, and self-employed individuals who lack support from regional and occupational healthcare domains remains an untackled issue.