Activities from external occupational health service organizations to support balancing treatment and occupational life in Japan

Abstract

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the activities to support balancing treatment and the occupational life of employees provided by occupational health service organizations. We also aimed to collect suggestions from these organizations for improving support activities in enterprises. Methods: Questionnaires about support activities (status, required external support, collaborative external facilities) were sent to 121 occupational health service organizations in Japan in 2018. Completed questionnaires were collected from 76 organizations (Response rate: 63.0%). The organizations were categorized as small (fewer than 99 employees), medium (100–199 employees), and large (200 employees or more). Results: More than 20% of the organizations had already started to provide several kinds of support activities. There were no significant differences in the status of support activities by size of occupational health service organization. To promote support activities, the organizations required external support, like educational programs, for occupational health specialists (59.5%), staff in client enterprises or health insurers (50.0%), or managers in the organizations themselves (48.6%). The most common external facility for referral or cooperation was prefectural occupational health total support centers (40.0% for referral and 24.0% for cooperation). Conclusions: This study found that some occupational health service organizations have already started to provide support activities for their clients. To promote these support activities, more educational programs should be provided for occupational health specialists, managers within the organizations, and staff of their clients.

Keywords

• balancing
• occupational health service organization
• support activities
• treatment and occupational life