[Report on role of occupational health nurses in the United States].
The purpose of this paper is to present the differences and similarities in the roles of occupational health nurses (OHNs) between the United States and Japan by reporting the results of interviews with seven OHNs who work at seven industries in the city and the suburbs of San Francisco. Four out of seven OHNs responded that one of their essential roles was "Case Manager", in regard to the prevention of work force reduction and the scaling back of workers' medical expenditures associated with work-related accidents. Only one of them responded that "Health Promotion Specialist" was the leading role, whereas 30% of the Japanese OHNs were engaged in this role, according to the results of a previous study. Similarly to the other roles of the Japanese OHNs, they also consider Clinicians, Managers, and OHS Coordinators as their important roles. Together, the result of interviewing the nurses indicated that the differences in the role delineation of the OHNs between the two countries depend upon their educational system of licensing as well as implementation of their responsibilities to the laws and regulations, including the Occupational Health and Safety Act, health examination of the OSHA Standard and employment of occupational medical doctors, medical insurance and compensation for workmen's accidents, etc. Furthermore, this visiting opportunity gave the authors suggestions for the advancement of educational programs to reinforce the professional activities of occupational health nursing in Japan.
Hara
Yoshiko
Y
Department of Public Health and Occupational Health Nursing, School of Health Sciences, University of Occupational and Environmental Health, Yahatanishi-ku, Kitakyushu 807-8555, Japan.
Ishihara
Itsuko
I
D000328:Adult; D019090:Case Management; D017046:Cost Savings; D005260:Female; D017048:Health Care Costs; D006293:Health Promotion; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008004:Licensure; D008875:Middle Aged; D024802:Nurse's Role; D016272:Occupational Health; D009785:Occupational Health Nursing / Q000193:education; D014481:United States