title: Development and process evaluation of the participatory and action-oriented empowerment model facilitated by occupational health nurses for workplace health promotion in small and medium-sized enterprises.
abstract: The objective of this study is to develop an available empowerment model for workplace health promotion (WHP) in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and to evaluate its applicability and feasibility. Semi-structured interviews with employers and workers in SMEs were conducted to assess their actual requirements for support. The structure of our new empowerment model was discussed and established through several rounds of focus group meetings with occupational safety and health researchers and practitioners on the basis of results of our interviews. We developed a new participatory and action-oriented empowerment model based on needs for support of employers and workers in SMEs. This new model consists of three originally developed tools: an action checklist, an information guidebook, and a book of good practices. As the facilitators, occupational health nurses (OHNs) from health insurance associations were trained to empower employers and workers using these tools. Approximately 80 SMEs (with less than 300 employees) were invited to participate in the model project. With these tools and continued empowerment by OHNs, employers and workers were able to smoothly work on WHP. This newly developed participatory and action-oriented empowerment model that was facilitated by trained OHNs appears to be both applicable and feasible for WHP in SMEs in Japan.
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Health Nursing, School of Health Sciences, Tokai University, Bohseidai, Iseharashi, Kanagawa, Japan.
authors.forename: Noriko
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Nishikido
authors.forename: Kazumi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Matsuda
authors.forename: Eiko
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Fukuda
authors.forename: Chiharu
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Motoki
authors.forename: Miho
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tsutaki
authors.forename: Yuko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kawakami
authors.forename: Akiko
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Yuasa
authors.forename: Miyoko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Iijima
authors.forename: Mika
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tanaka
authors.forename: Mamoru
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hirata
authors.forename: Minoru
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hojoh
authors.forename: Tomoko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ikeda
authors.forename: Kazutoshi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Maeda
authors.forename: Yukari
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Miyoshi
authors.forename: Sumiko
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Arai
authors.forename: Hiroyuki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Mitsuhashi
mesh_terms: D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D017144:Focus Groups; D006293:Health Promotion; D007564:Japan; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D009785:Occupational Health Nursing; D016730:Program Development; D017132:Workplace