Yoshihisa FUJINO, et al.: Development a work functioning impairment scale lation of the estimated Rasch measurements from these groups was 0.99 (95% CI: 0.976−0.992). Conclusions:The WFun was confirmed to show good fit to a Rasch model and construct validity. Given that its good fit indicates specific objectivity, this tool will be useful in assessing the ability of individuals to function at work and in evaluating group levels for benchmarking. (J Occup Health 2015; 57: 521-531)

Objectives:The health effects of telework, which was introduced extensively in the immediate context of the COVID-19 pandemic crisis in Japan, on teleworkers, their families, and non-teleworkers, are unknown. Accordingly, we developed a rapid health impact assessment (HIA) to evaluate positive and negative health effects of telework on these groups and recommended easily implementable countermeasures. Methods: Immediately after an emergency was declared in Japan, we implemented a rapid, five-step HIA. We screened and categorized health effects of telework for the three above-mentioned groups, extracting their content, directionality, and likelihood. Following a scoping exercise to determine the HIA's overall implementation, five experienced occupational health physicians appraised and prioritized the screened items and added new items. We outlined specific countermeasures and disseminated the results on our website. A short-term evaluation was conducted by three external occupational health physicians and three nurses. Results: Following screening and appraisal, 59, 29, and 27 items were listed for teleworkers, non-teleworkers, and family members of teleworkers, respectively, covering work, lifestyle, disease and medical care, and home and community. Targeted countermeasures focused on the work environment, business management, communications, and lifestyles for teleworkers; safety and medical guidelines, work prioritization, and regular communication for non-teleworkers; and shared responsibilities within families and communication outside families for family members of teleworkers. Conclusion:The HIA's validity and the countermeasures' practical applicability were confirmed by the external evaluators. They can be easily applied and adapted across diverse industries to mitigate the wider negative effects of telework and enhance its positive effects.

This study suggests that the WFun is useful in detecting those who have health problems affecting their work.

Assessing work functioning impairment is a useful way of classifying risk for future sick leave among employees.

Objective: To determine the convergent validity and responsiveness of the work functioning impairment scale (WFun) in workers with musculoskeletal disorder-related pain. Methods: Participants were extracted from an internet user study and prospectively examined using the pain intensity numerical rating scale (pain-NRS), the work ability numerical rating scale (productivity-NRS), and the WFun at baseline, 2 weeks, 6 weeks, and 3 months. The convergent validity and responsiveness of the WFun were examined by multilevel regression analysis. Results: A total of 786 workers participated and 593 completed all surveys. The WFun score gradually increased and decreased as the pain-NRS and the productivity-NRS increased, respectively. Changes in the WFun score steadily increased and decreased as changes in the pain-NRS and the productivity-NRS increased, respectively. Multilevel analyses showed that all linear associations were significant. Conclusions: The convergent validity and responsiveness of the WFun were consistent with the expected direction and magnitude.

BackgroundFocusing on the respiratory function for health effect indices, we conducted a cross-sectional study on workers who did and did not handle toner to compare the longitudinal changes.MethodsAmong 116 individuals who worked for a Japanese business equipment manufacturer and participated in the study, the analysis included 69 male workers who we were able to follow up for 4 years. We categorized the 40 workers engaged in toner-handling work as the exposed group and the 29 workers not engaged in these tasks as the referent group, and compared their respiratory function test results: peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR), vital capacity (VC), predicted vital capacity (%VC), forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1), and forced expiratory volume in 1 second as a percent of forced vital capacity (FEV1%).ResultsThe cross-sectional study of the respiratory function test results at the baseline and at the 5th year showed no statistically significant differences in PEFR, VC, %VC, FEV1, and FEV1% between the exposed and referent workers. Also, respiratory function time-course for 4 years was calculated and compared between the groups. No statistically significant differences were shown.ConclusionOur study does not suggest any toner exposure effects on respiratory function. However, the number of subjects was small in our study; studies of larger populations will be desired in the future.

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