Effects of work-family life support program on the work-family interface and mental health among Japanese dual-earner couples with a preschool child: A randomized controlled trial.

OBJECTIVES: This study examined the effectiveness of a newly developed work-family life support program on the work-family interface and mental health indicators among Japanese dual-earner couples with a preschool child(/ren) using a randomized controlled trial with a waitlist. METHODS: Participants who met the inclusion criteria were randomly allocated to the intervention or the control groups (n = 79 and n = 85, respectively). The program comprised two 3-h sessions with a 1-month interval between them and provided comprehensive skills by including self-management, couple management, and parenting management components. The program sessions were conducted on weekends in a community center room with 3-10 participants. Outcomes were assessed at baseline, 1-month, and 3-month follow-ups. Primary outcomes were work-family balance self-efficacy (WFBSE), four types of work-family spillovers (i.e., work-to-family conflict, family-to-work conflict, work-to-family facilitation, and family-to-work facilitation), psychological distress, and work engagement reported by the participants. RESULTS: The program had significantly pooled intervention effects on WFBSE (P = .031) and psychological distress (P = .014). The effect sizes (Cohen's d) were small, with values of 0.22 at the 1-month follow-up and 0.24 at the 3-month follow-up for WFBSE, and -0.36 at the 3-month follow-up for psychological distress. However, the program had nonsignificant pooled effects on four types of work-family spillovers and work engagement. CONCLUSIONS: The program effectively increased WFBSE and decreased psychological distress among Japanese dual-earner couples with a preschool child(/ren).

Hospital organizational structure factors related to discharge planning activities for alcoholics by nurses in Japan.

AIM: Nurses play a significant role in providing discharge support for alcoholics. We aimed to explore the organizational structures of hospitals that are related to effective discharge planning activities provided by nurses. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional survey of Japanese hospitals with psychiatric wards that accept alcoholics. The survey questionnaire was administered to one nurse per hospital from August to September 2019. The Discharge Planning Scale for Ward Nurses (DPWN) was used to assess the actual status of the hospital nurse teams' discharge planning activities. The DPWN consists of four subscales: subscale I, "collect information from patients and their families"; subscale II, "supports for decision-making for the patients and families"; subscale III, "utilization of social resources"; and subscale IV, "discharge guidance by cooperating with community support teams and multidisciplinary teams." RESULTS: From the valid responses of 116 hospitals, scores on subscale IV were significantly lower than scores on subscales I, II, and III, indicating that medical care guidance through multidisciplinary collaboration between hospitals and the community was inadequate. In addition, multiple regression analysis showed that "hospital management and administrators understanding about nurses' discharge support activities," and "planning discharge schedules, such as using clinical paths" were significantly and independently related to the total DPWN and each of subscale scores, regardless of the hospital's establishment body and size. "Multidisciplinary discharge support" was significantly related to subscale II. CONCLUSIONS: These findings have implications for the management of discharge planning activities provided by nurses for alcoholics through multidisciplinary collaboration.