Depression in Family Caregivers of the Frail Elderly in Sapporo, Japan : A Cross-Sectional Study

Background: Depression affecting caregivers is a risk factor for discontinuing at-home care. Objective: The present cross-sectional study was conducted to evaluate factors related to depression of family caregivers. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in order to evaluate factors related to depression among family aregivers for the frail elderly with periodic nurse service in 2008, in 7 home-visiting nursing service stations in Sapporo, Japan. Caregivers were asked to answer a self-administered questionnaire about various factors that might affect their depression, and also to complete a Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale Evaluation (CES-D). We analyzed 71 pairs in total. Results: Factors related to poor health (OR=3.40, 95%CI: 1.13, 10.18) and a longer time spent physically caregiving (OR=3.08, 95%CI: 1.02, 9.35) were associated with being depressed. On the other hand, factors related to a good or fair economic position (OR=0.30, 95%CI: 0.10, 0.91), having a sister or brother who could help from the outside (OR=0.21, 95%CI: 0.05, 0.91), being able to relieve irritation caused by caregiving (OR=0.10, 95%CI: 0.03, 0.36), using the care service at home well (OR=0.24, 95%CI: 0.06, 0.98), and being able to pay more than 10,000 Japanese Yen by themselves as part of the total care service costs (OR=0.15, 95%CI: 0.04, 0.57) were associated with not being depressed. Conclusion: Caregivers should be supported not only informally but also by a new government funded system

Factors related to depression among childcare worker;Cross-sectional study in Hokkaido, Japan

The goal of the present study was to investigate the factors related to depression among childcare workers. From November 2015 to August 2016, 358 nurseries (17.9%) answered a questionnaire. Adjusted for nursery work experience totaling more than five years, work place, cooperation in the work place, quality of sleep, hospital visiting, factors related to work of more than five years (OR=0.55, 95%CIs=(0.34, 0.91)), ability to consult troubles with boss (OR=0.36, 5%CIs=(0.18, 0.73)), to be able to take paid holidays (OR=0.49, 95%CIs=(0.27, 0.88)), having a spouse (OR=0.55, 95%CIs=(0.32, 0.94)) were considered to decrease the risk of depression. The Japanese government should prompt to improve the reatment of nurseries

Effectiveness of Influenza vaccines in reducing risk of acute febrile illness among community-dwelling elderly, 2006-07 seasons : Population-based cohort study in Japan

Background: Annual vaccinations are recommended for groups with high-risk medical conditions, as well as the residents of nursing homes. In general, little is known about the vaccine effectiveness of vaccines for Influenza-like illness (ILI) in community-dwelling elderly. Methods: A population based cohort study was conducted during the 2006-2007 (06/07) influenza season to examine the effectiveness of an influenza vaccine among community-dwelling elderly. We selected 1,000 elderly citizens ranging from 65 to 74 years old randomly from a population registry of Sapporo in September 2006. Baseline survey for them was conducted in October or November 2006, and 542 (54.2%) subjects responded with an informed consent. We excluded one person because he passed away before the follow-up survey. Thus, we analyzed 541 subjects. We followed-up the participants concerning acute febrile illnesses, hospitalizations, and so on every prior month from December 2006 to April 2007 though telephone interviews. The Chi-square test and Mann-Whitney U-test were used to compare vaccinated group to non-vaccinated group, and Cox’s hazard model was conducted to control for potential confounding factors. Results: After adjusting for confounders, the vaccination decreased acute fevers higher than or equal to 37.5°C (Hazard ratio (HR) =0.42, 95% confidence interval (CI)=(0.20, 0.90)) from December 2006 to March 2007, but was not associated with the risk of ILI (HR=1.25, 95%CI=(0.29, 5.37)). Conclusion: An influenza vaccination may decrease an acute fever during an influenza epidemic season in community-dwelling elderly

Factors influencing attitudes toward end-of-life care by care workers at special nursing homes for the elderly A Cross-sectional study in Japan

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to clarify factors influencing care workers\u27 attitudes toward end-of-life (EOL) care characteristics at special nursing homes (SNHs). Methods: A questionnaire was initially sent to 630 care workers at 19 SNHs in October 2012. Written informed consent was obtained from 253 of these workers (40.2%), who then completed and returned the questionnaires. Participants were asked to reply to questions covering demographic data, work environment, depression status, experiences/education concerning EOL, communication skills, and attitudes toward EOL care. The Japanese version of the Frommelt Attitude Toward Care of the Dying Scale, Form B (FATCOD-B-J) assessment instrument was used in the analysis of the data received. Using the median value of the FATCOD-B-J score, 130 subjects were allocated to the high score (HS) group (FATCOD-B-J?23) and 123 to the low score (LS) group (FATCOD-B-J<23). In the LS group, the odds ratios (ORs) and their 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) of participants exhibiting relatively negative attitudes toward EOL care were calculated and adjusted for potential confounding factors using multivariate logistic regression model analysis. Results: Length of employment in the facilities of between 5 and 9 years (OR 0.37, 95% CI 0.16-0.87) as well as over 10 years (OR 0.39, 95% CI 0.16-0.96) was significantly associated with a decreased risk of placement in the LS group. Furthermore, moderate (OR 0.44, 95% CI 0.24-0.80) as well as high (OR 0.35, 95%CI 0.17-0.75) communication skills in accepting other opinions, were significantly associated with decreased risk of placement in the LS group. Conclusions: After adjustments for potential confounding variables, results indicated that extended experience as a care worker and higher communication skills in accepting other opinions were significantly associated with a reduced risk of negative attitudes toward EOL care

特別養護老人ホームにおける介護職の看取りに対する態度に影響尾及ぼす要因 : 日本における縦断研究

Aim: The aim of the present study was to clarify that the effects of accumulated experience in end-of-life care and communication skill on the attitudes of care workers’ toward end-of-life care. Methods: A study implemented 2012 to 2014. Two hundred and fifty-three questionnaires were returned (40.2%), and 170 were fully completed by care workers in special nursing homes. We sorted the responses into two groups by experience level: the experienced end-of-life care (EE) group and the inexperience end-of-life care (IE) group. Responses were also sorted by communication skill level: a high score communication (HSC) group and a low score communication (LSC) group. A two-way repeated measure analysis of variance was used for the statistical analysis. Results: The EE group was more likely to be younger (P = .04), to have a longer duration of employment (P < .001), and to have participated in an EOL care seminar in their facility (P = .02) than the IE group. Attitudes toward end-of-life care were significantly different between the EE and IE groups (df = 2, F = 3.35, P < .05). Attitudes toward end-of-life care were not significantly different when comparing the HSC and LSC groups (df = 2, F = 0.17, P = .85). The communication skill between the HSC and LSC groups differed significantly at 2012, 2013, and 2014. Conclusions: The accumulation of end-of-life care experience prompted a positive change in attitudes toward end-of-life care. Meanwhile, communication skill had no significant effect to change attitudes toward end-of-life care