Abstract
Purpose: The purpose of this research was to identify from the view point of occupational health nurses what issues managers feel necessary to learn about in order to provide care for workers with mental disorders and promote mental health care system in the workplace. Method : We examined 163 questions asked by 748 managers during 25 seminars on mental health care. The seminars were planned and held by occupational health nurses in 2000-2002. We classified the questions by similarities of their content and categorized them. Results : Five categories were identified based on the similarities of the managers' learning needs expressed in the questions : 1. Understanding mental disorders : causes of mental disorders, medical examinations and treatment of mental disorders. 2. Care for employees with mental disorders : care at work, during sick absence, after returning to work: cooperation with employees' physicians. 3. Problems of workplace environment : job stress factors, communication among employees, generation gap. 4. Mental health care methods: self-care, consultations by health care staff, preventive measures by managers, utilization of social resources. 5. Development of the mental health care system : return-to-work support system, protection of privacy, personnel management.
