Communicating With Residents About Risks Following the Fukushima Nuclear Accident.
The Fukushima nuclear accident in March 2011 posed major threats to public health. In response, medical professionals have tried to communicate the risks to residents. To investigate forms of risk communication and to share lessons learned, we reviewed medical professionals' activities in Fukushima Prefecture from the prefectural level to the individual level: public communication through Fukushima Health Management Surveys, a Yorozu ("general") health consultation project, communications of radiological conditions and health promotion in Iitate and Kawauchi villages, dialogues based on whole-body counter, and science communications through online media. The activities generally started with radiation risks, mainly through group-based discussions, but gradually shifted to face-to-face communications to address comprehensive health risks to individuals and well-being. The activities were intended to support residents' decisions and to promote public health in a participatory manner. This article highlights the need for a systematic evaluation of ongoing risk communication practices, and a wider application of successful approaches for Fukushima recovery and for better preparedness for future disasters.
1 Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan.
Michio
M
Murakami
2 United Nations University Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability, Tokyo, Japan.
Akiko
A
Sato
1 Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan.
Shiro
S
Matsui
1 Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan.
Aya
A
Goto
1 Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan.
Atsushi
A
Kumagai
3 Soma Central Hospital, Fukushima, Japan.|4 Minamisoma Municipal General Hospital, Fukushima, Japan.
Masaharu
M
Tsubokura
5 Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan.
Makiko
M
Orita
5 Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan.
Noboru
N
Takamura
1 Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan.
Yujiro
Y
Kuroda
3 Soma Central Hospital, Fukushima, Japan.
Sae
S
Ochi
D003142:Communication; D062406:Fukushima Nuclear Accident; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D000069079:Radiation Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D012306:Risk
Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station accident; anxiety; psychological distress; radiation risk; risk communication; the Great East Japan Earthquake