Family Members In Japan Research Articles

Perks or burdens? Being “nearly (Im)mobile” as IT foreign professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan

ABSTRACT This paper investigates how Vietnamese IT professionals managed their daily work and family lives in Japan during the COVID-19 pandemic. Adapting the concept of “nearly mobile”, this study suggests a concept of “nearly (im)mobile”, which focuses on the tensions and opportunities between mobility and immobility in skilled migrants’ work and family life. Workers from Vietnam comprise the third-largest group of foreign IT professionals in Japan. Many worked remotely during the pandemic, like others in the IT industry. However, amidst the unmitigated expansion of remote work during the pandemic including among Japanese nationals, how these workers experienced this work style has remained under-researched. The findings are based on semi-structured online and in-person interview data from Vietnamese IT professionals. Similar to Japanese national employees, many Vietnamese professionals could work remotely. Moreover, the workforce needs in the labour market allowed some to change jobs. However, junior workers were forced to be immobile (at the office) or stay in on-the-job training, and some skilled workers were expected to commit to longer hours for online communication with staff in Vietnam. Additionally, border restrictions exposed the immobility of foreign IT professionals and family members in Japan and Vietnam, which prevented these professionals from receiving childcare support from their families. This paper argues that while Vietnamese IT professionals could be physically “nearly (im)mobile” by staying at home to work, they were simultaneously pressured to undergo “nearly (im)mobile” work practices in Japanese firms while constrained by managing their work and family lives.

Estimating and Predicting the Rate of Kidney Function Decline over 10 years in the General Population.

We aimed to estimate the rate of kidney function decline over 10 years in the general population and develop a machine learning model to predict it. We used the JMDC database from 2012 to 2021, which includes company employees and their family members in Japan, where annual health checks are mandated for people aged 40-74 years. We estimated the slope (average change) of estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) over a period of 10 years. Then, using the annual health-check results and prescription claims for the first five years from 2012 to 2016 as predictor variables, we developed an XGBoost model, evaluated its prediction performance with the root mean squared error (RMSE), R2, and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC) for rapid decliners (defined as the slope <-3 ml/min/1.73 m2/year) using 5-fold cross validation, and compared these indicators with those of (i) the simple application of the eGFR slope from 2012 to 2016 and (ii) the adjusted linear regression model. We included 126,424 individuals (mean age, 45.2 years; male, 82.4%; mean eGFR, 79.0 ml/min/1.73 m2 in 2016). The mean slope was -0.89 (standard deviation, 0.96) ml/min/1.73 m2/year. The predictive performance of the XGBoost model (RMSE, 0.78; R2, 0.35; and AUROC, 0.89) was better than that of either the simple application of the eGFR slope from 2012 to 2016 (RMSE, 1.94; R2, -3.03; and AUROC, 0.79) or the adjusted linear regression model (RMSE, 0.81; R2, 0.30; and AUROC, 0.87). We estimated the rate of kidney function decline over 10 years in the general population as well as demonstrated that application of machine learning to annual health-check and claims data provides better predictive performance compared to traditional methods.

A survey on the division of housework among family members in Japan

A survey on the division of housework among family members in Japan

Fragile resonance: caring for older family members in Japan and England

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Fragile resonance: caring for older family members in Japan and England

Fragile resonance: caring for older family members in Japan and EnglandJason Danely (2022)New York, Cornell University Press249 p.ISBN13: 9781501765810

Defiance or Self-Neglect?

A brief consideration of the term "self-neglect" as used in the gerontological nursing literature is in this column. It will serve as an introduction to the main article that reports on a survey of family members in Japan about their elder family members who refuse nursing care.

Book Review: Fragile Resonance: Caring for Older Family Members in Japan and England

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Fragile Resonance: Caring for Older Family Members in Japan and England, by JasonDanely, Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 2022. 249 pp.

Fragile Resonance: Caring for Older Family Members in Japan and England, by JasonDanely, Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 2022. 249 pp.

Bereaved Family Members' Perspectives of Good Death and Quality of End-of-Life Care for Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma Patients: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Objective: This study investigated whether malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) patients achieved good deaths and good quality of end-of-life care compared with other cancer patients from the perspective of bereaved family members in Japan. Methods: This cross-sectional study was part of a larger study on the achievement of good deaths of MPM patients and the bereavement of their family members. Bereaved family members of MPM patients in Japan (n = 72) were surveyed. The Good Death Inventory (GDI) was used to assess the achievement of good death. The short version of the Care Evaluation Scale (CES) version 2 was used to assess the quality of end-of-life care. The GDI and CES scores of MPM patients were compared with those of a Japanese cancer population from a previous study. Results: MPM patients failed to achieve good deaths. Only 12.5% of the MPM patients were free from physical pain. The GDI scores of most of the MPM patients were significantly lower than those of the Japanese cancer population. The CES scores indicated a significantly poorer quality of end-of-life care for the MPM patients than the Japanese cancer population. The total GDI and CES scores were correlated (r = 0.55). Conclusions: The quality of end-of-life care for MPM patients remains poor. Moreover, MPM patients do not achieve good deaths from the perspective of their bereaved family members.

Factors Associated With Family Member's Spanking of 3.5-year-old Children in Japan.

BackgroundSpanking can cause adverse psychological development and biological functional changes in children. However, spanking is widely used by parents in Japan. This study explored the risk factors for family member’s spanking of 3.5-year-old children using nationwide population data in Japan.MethodsSurveys were administered to family members in Japan who had a child in 2001 (first cohort) or in 2010 (second cohort), and the data when their child was 0.5, 1.5, and 3.5 years old were used. We used multivariate binary and ordinal logistic regression analyses to examine the associations between risk factors and spanking children at 3.5 years of age, which was subcategorized into frequencies of never, sometimes, and always spanking, presented with odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs).ResultsAmong 70,450 families, 62.8% and 7.9% sometimes and always spanked their children, respectively. Children in the second cohort were spanked less frequently compared with those in the first cohort, and fathers who responded to the questionnaire spanked children less frequently than mothers who responded. Identified associated factors for spanking were male child, presence of siblings of the child, not living in a two-parent household, not living in a three-generation household, younger parents, parents with lower education, no outside work or unstable work, and lower family income.ConclusionsWe found a high prevalence of spanking and its associated factors. Approaching those with lower socioeconomic factors and promoting fathers’ involvement in parenting may be important public health strategies for reducing and preventing spanking.

Beliefs and Perceptions About Parenteral Nutrition and Hydration by Family Members of Patients With Advanced Cancer Admitted to Palliative Care Units: A Nationwide Survey of Bereaved Family Members in Japan

ContextThere has been a growing consensus that parenteral nutrition and hydration is to be forgone in terminally ill patients with cancer. However, it remains unclear what the beliefs and perceptions of parenteral nutrition and hydration by the family members are. ObjectivesTo clarify their beliefs and perceptions and examine the relationships between the factors of family members, their beliefs and perceptions, and their overall satisfaction with the care the patient received at the place of death. MethodsThis study was performed as a part of the cross-sectional anonymous nationwide survey of the bereaved family members of patients with cancer in Japan. ResultsIn total, 1001 questionnaires were sent, and 610 questionnaires were returned. Among these, 499 were analyzed. Regarding the prevalence of beliefs and perceptions about parenteral nutrition and hydration, when a patient cannot eat enough, parenteral hydration is needed was the highest (87.7%), followed by the opinions of medical staff are important in the issue of parenteral nutrition and hydration, parenteral hydration serves as a substitute for oral hydration, and if I were a patient and could not eat enough, parenteral hydration would be needed (85.1%, 81.0%, and 80.0%, respectively). We extracted two concepts as follows: belief that parenteral nutrition and hydration are beneficial and perceived need for parenteral nutrition and hydration. They were not identified as independent determinants of overall care satisfaction. ConclusionThis study showed that beliefs and perceptions about parenteral nutrition and hydration were important in the family members in palliative care.

“Coming Out” as a family with an LGB member in Japan: Normalizing strategies and negotiating with social norms

ABSTRACT Research on parents of an LGB child demonstrates the processes of parents’ emotional and behavioral changes leading them finally to accept their children. Only after parents accept their children will they be able to start their own process of “coming out”. This article examines how families with an LGB member in Japan come out by negotiating with social norms. Interviews with family members in Japan revealed that most respondents went through emotional and behavioral changes to accept an LGB member; however, their struggle continued even after they accepted an LGB member due to their fear of negative judgments by others around them. Also, the respondents felt more difficulty coming out to people they know than to anonymous others. How the respondents try to control their emotions and negotiate with others reveals that families face difficulties dealing with one of their members being an LGB person and coming out to others despite social improvements surrounding the LGB community in general. This shows that a certain degree of stigma against sexual minorities at the interpersonal level remains strong in the society. In response, respondents used a normalizing strategy in order to avoid possible conflicts with people in close relationships.

Full-Time Employment and Marital Satisfaction among Women in East Asian Societies

Abstract Using the 2006 East Asian Social Survey, the current study examines the relationship between wives’ employment status and their marital satisfaction in China, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan. The results show that full-time housewives are more satisfied as compared to full-time employed wives in Taiwan, while part-time employed wives are less satisfied than full-time employed wives in China. Wives’ marital satisfaction is also associated with their gender role attitudes, husband’s housework participation, and a number of family members in Japan and South Korea. The relationship between wives’ employment and their marital satisfaction varies even among four East Asian countries, where gender climate is relatively similar.

Psychological and psychiatric symptoms of terminally ill patients with cancer and their family caregivers in the home-care setting: A nation-wide survey from the perspective of bereaved family members in Japan

ObjectiveThe psychological and psychiatric symptoms of terminally ill cancer patients are highly problematic and have been associated with greater burden among caregivers. Until now, the extent of these problems in the home care setting was unclear. MethodsThis retrospective study was conducted as part of a nationwide survey from the perspective of bereaved family members in Japan (J-HOPE3). The bereaved family members rated the symptoms of delirium and suicidal ideation of patients with cancer, and the sleeplessness and depressed mood of family caregivers utilizing home care services in the one month before the patients' deaths. Regression analyses were performed to identify factors associated with caregivers' sleeplessness or depressed mood. ResultsOf the 532 subjects analyzed, between 17% and 65% of patients experienced various symptoms of delirium, and 27% suicidal ideation. Among family caregivers, 60% experienced sleeplessness and 35% experienced depressed mood at least once during the week. Caregivers' psychological symptoms were associated with their own poor health status, being the spouse of the patient, and the patients' psychological or psychiatric symptoms. To manage patients' symptoms, 11% of caregivers had consulted psychiatrists or psychologists while another 11% wanted to do so. ConclusionPsychological problems assessed were common among patients with cancer and their family caregivers in the one month of home care prior to the patient's death. An effective complementary care system, run by home-visit physicians, nurses, and experts in mental disorders, is needed.

The Effect of Providing Life Support on Nurses' Decision Making Regarding Life Support for Themselves and Family Members in Japan.

Decision making in terminal illness has recently received increased attention. In Japan, patients and their families typically make decisions without understanding either the severity of illness or the efficacy of life-supporting treatments at the end of life. Japanese culture traditionally directs the family to make decisions for the patient. This descriptive study examined the influence of the experiences of 391 Japanese nurses caring for dying patients and family members and how that experience changed their decision making for themselves and their family members. The results were mixed but generally supported the idea that the more experience nurses have in caring for the dying, the less likely they would choose to institute lifesupport measures for themselves and family members. The results have implications for discussions on end-of-life care.

Molecular epidemiologic study of community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus with Panton-Valentine leukocidin gene among family members in Japan.

Community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) is one of the worldwide concerns of antimicrobial chemotherapy. An accumulation of ten patients in five families (A-E) suffering from skin and soft tissue infection (SSTI) of CA-MRSA was experienced in 2012, in Fuchu-shi, Tokyo, Japan. Molecular epidemiological investigation was performed for the 10 MRSA strains obtained from 8 children and 2 of their parents to assess endemic patterns of CA-MRSA in the community. Results of molecular typing, presence of toxin genes and antimicrobial susceptibilities were analyzed combined with the patients' clinical information. Each family had its own unique MRSA strain: A, ST30-SCCmec IVd; B, ST8-SCCmec IVd; C, ST8-SCCmec IVa; D, ST8-SCCmec IVl; E, ST8-SCCmec IVl and ST858-SCCmec IVl. Seven strains from the families A-C carried Panton-Valentine leukocidin gene. Three strains from the families D and E carried toxic shock syndrome toxin gene. Strains belonged to the same family demonstrated genetically related banding patterns of pulsed-filed gel electrophoresis. The family C experienced intrafamilial transmission of USA300-0114. Our data showed the MRSA clones disseminating in this community were highly diverse. They contained USA300-0114 clone, the rapidly distributing clone in the world, as well as MRSA clones identified in Japan. Our results suggested intrafamilial transmission of MRSA could be initial phenomenon of wide transmission in a community, therefore CA-MRSA SSTI in children and their family members should be monitored closely in order to notice the spread of highly pathogenic and transmittable strains.

Changes experienced by and the future values of bereaved family members determined using narratives from bereavement life review therapy

The goals of this study were to investigate the changes experienced by bereaved family members in Japan and to determine what activities they would value in the future based on narratives from a bereavement life review, which is a type of psychotherapy used to treat depression and promote spiritual well-being. The participants were 20 bereaved Japanese family members who underwent two sessions of bereavement life review over a period of two weeks. Using qualitative analysis, we identified four areas of changes ("learning from the deceased's death and self-growth," "healing process," "relating with others," "relating with society," and "performing new family roles") and five categories of valued activities ("continuing grief work," "living with a philosophy," "attaining life roles," "keeping good human relationships," and "enjoying life"). "Learning from the deceased's death and self-growth" and "relating with others" are common in Japan and Western countries, whereas "relating with society," "healing process," and "performing new family roles" are more characteristic of Japan. The strength of bonding with the deceased may influence the values of bereaved family members. We concluded that bereavement life review therapy can contribute positively to their grief work.

SY13-2 - Good Communication and Emotional Care for Patients with Cancer: The Role of Psycho-Oncology

ABSTRACT The Cancer Control Act implemented in April 2007 in Japan reveals necessity of appropriate and continuous palliative care just after cancer diagnosis. Good communication between medical staffs and cancer patients is essential in order to achieve this goal. Actually, as basic plan of the Cancer Control Act clearly describes, truth-telling of cancer diagnosis to patients itself is relevant communication skill and physicians are expected to provide emotional care for patients just after disclosure of diagnosis. In addition, each patient's optimal decision making is also achieved based on good communication including sufficient information provision and support from his/her physician. Thus it may be no exaggeration to say that physician's good communication skill is essential clinical competency for medical oncology practice. The importance of communication, however, may not be fully recognized in current medical practice in Japan. From this point of view, one of the important roles of psycho-oncology in Japan is to help physicians and patients establish good communication between them. In this symposium I will talk about communication issues between physicians and patients based on previous findings including cross-cultural aspects as well as current status. Furthermore, the role of psycho-oncology in order to provide better medical oncology practice for cancer patients and family members in Japan will also be discussed.

Practices and evaluations of prognostic disclosure for Japanese cancer patients and their families from the family's point of view

The primary end points of this analysis were to explore 1) the practices of prognostic disclosure for patients with cancer and their family members in Japan, 2) the person who decided on the degree of prognosis communication, and 3) family evaluations of the type of prognostic disclosure. Semistructured face-to-face interviews were conducted with 60 bereaved family members of patients with cancer who were admitted to palliative care units in Japan. Twenty-five percent of patients and 75% of family members were informed of the predicted survival time of the patient. Thirty-eight percent of family members answered that they themselves decided on to what degree to communicate the prognosis to patients and 83% of them chose not to disclose to patients their prognosis or incurability. In the overall evaluation of prognosis communication, 30% of the participants said that they regretted or felt doubtful about the degree of prognostic disclosure to patients, whereas 37% said that they were satisfied with the degree of prognostic disclosure and 5% said that they had made a compromise. Both in the “prognostic disclosure” group and the “no disclosure” group, there were family members who said that they regretted or felt doubtful (27% and 31%, respectively) and family members who said that they were satisfied with the degree of disclosure (27% and 44%, respectively). In conclusion, family members assume the predominant role as the decision-making source regarding prognosis disclosure to patients, and they often even prevent prognostic disclosure to patients. From the perspective of family members, any one type of disclosure is not necessarily the most acceptable choice. Future surveys should explore the reasons why family members agree or disagree with prognostic disclosures to patients and factors correlated with family evaluations.

Spread of the community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus USA300 clone among family members in Japan

The USA300 clone is a highly-virulent community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, which has been predominant in the United States. In a previous study, we isolated the USA300 clone from an 11-month-old Japanese girl, who lived in Saitama (Japan), and suffered from cellulitis and sepsis, and subsequently osteomyelitis, in 2008. In this study, we searched for the source of such USA300 infection in three related families (the patient's grandfather and grandmother, having a USA300-infected daughter [F2D], and a mother [F3M] who was a sister of F2D's mother). In January, 2008, F3M and her family members visited Hawaii and were treated in a hospital for gastroenteritis (with diarrhea) with an intravenous drip for F3M. After their return to Japan in January, F3M suffered from unusually frequent (more than 10 times) skin soft-tissue infections (SSTIs) until successful chemotherapy in July in Saitama. In the same summer season, SSTI was observed in 7 of 11 family members (63.6%). This dense spread of SSTI was followed by cellulitis and sepsis (USA300-isolated case) in October and subsequent osteomyelitis in December in F2D. After successful chemotherapy for the patient (F2D), no new SSTI cases were observed among the family members, and no USA300 colonization was observed when examined in December, 2009. The data suggest the first spread of the USA300 clone in Japan with related families at the core and that such USA300 spread in the community is likely to have occurred in the summer season in Japan.