BARRIERS TO HEALTH PROMOTION IN JAPANESE COMPANIES WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO HEALTH PERSONNEL

The Ministry of Labor of Japan instituted a campaign to promote the ph ysical and mental health of all workers in 1988. This study was perfor med to clarify barriers to health promotion programs in occupational s ettings in Japan, with special reference to health personnel. A survey was conducted using a questionnaire sent to 395 companies throughout Japan in 1993. The sample companies were chosen from the directory own ed by the Society of Occupational Medicine. A questionnaire was mailed to the companies, asking that the questionnaire be mailed back after having been answered anonymously, We received 232 replies, a response rate of 59%. Companies with more than 300 employees accounted for 76% of the sample. Lack of health personnel ranked as the top reason for n ot implementing health promotion programs, and it was also one of the important barriers to the further development of health promotion prog rams. Qualified health personnel in charge of health promotion program s were employed by no more than about 60% of the companies. Education and training of health personnel in charge of health promotion program s should be increased with special reference to the development of the ir expertise. Corporate management seems to play a very important role in solving the problem of lack of health personnel.