The purpose of this study was to clarify the association among the characteristics of pre-educational images of elder people (based on four viewpoints), contact situations with them (living-together history and frequency of conversations), and degree of interest in elderly care, targeting nursing students in Yutori-Generation, for the development of elderly care education based on the characteristics of the generation. We conducted an anonymous questionnaire survey and analyzed the responses from 180 students with text mining and statistical method. In the answers for "Typical images, seen and heard", the "Living together" group quoted the changes brought about by aging. On the other hand, many students in the "Never lived together" and the "With little conversation" groups held the images of conditions with diseases, impairments, and pains for elderly people. As for "Ideal images", the "Living together" group showed a tendency to focus on quality of life, however, most answers from the "Never lived together" group attached value to appearance and youthfulness. In the answers from the "living together in the past" and the "Never lived together" groups for "Undesirable images", a number of expressions which indicated negative feelings or emotions toward superficial words and deeds of elderly people were found. A majority of answers for "Meanings in the existence to you" indicated adoration and respect toward them. However a small number of students in the "With little conversation" and the "Never lived together" groups held the feeling of repulsion in getting old and rejection toward involvement with elderly people, and showed low interest in elderly care. These findings indicate that new educational environment and methods are required to cultivate critical thinking which is not influenced by mass media, create more occasions for interactions with elderly people through cooperation with local communities, and reconstruct images of old-age from the first-year at the university, based on the characteristics and living background of Yutori-Generation.

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This purpose of this study was to clarify awareness of information transfer with other professional occupations among staff at health care facilities for the elderly. Self-administered questionnaires were conducted with 160 nurses, 275 care workers, and 99 rehabilitation therapists. The study focused on information such as residents' illnesses, everyday living conditions, and functional training and required participants to state their awareness of "providing (receiving) information" for each item on four levels. The Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used to analyze the participants' awareness of information transfer. Nurses' awareness of information transfer differed from that of care workers with regard to seven items, such as residents' illnesses and professional knowledge and skills, and from that of rehabilitation therapists with regard to six items, such as residents' illnesses, everyday living conditions, and family intentions. Care workers' awareness of information transfer differed from that of nurses with regard to seven items, such as residents' illnesses and everyday living conditions, and from that of rehabilitation therapists with regard to seven items, such as residents' illnesses and family intentions. Rehabilitation therapists' awareness of information transfer differed from that of nurses with regard to seven items, such as the content of residents' training and professional knowledge and skills, and from that of care workers with regard to six items, such as everyday living conditions.

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This study aimed to reveal the characteristics of social contribution activities among elderly individuals in need of long-term nursing care by investigating the targets, objectives, and self-assessments of the contributions. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 9 elderly individuals in need of long-term nursing care, and the data were analyzed by evaluation item. The targets of social contribution activities included immediate families, fellow nursing care recipients and providers, and community residents. The objectives of social activities were to share their joy and sadness, coexist by accomplishing what they can, pray for peace and safety, promote health, appreciate each other, teach values and tradition, and revitalize their community. The strengths of elderly individuals in long-term nursing care were inherited ingenuity, incorporation of alternatives, attention to building relationships, continuous learning, adaptation to aging and disabilities, dissemination of values, benefits of aging, harmony between people and objects, and dreams of taking up challenges. The problems associated with social activities were fear for the future of their family, activity restrictions, immature normalization, and threats to community values and to the conservation of scenery. Taken together, this study revealed that the characteristics of social contribution activities among elderly individuals in need of long-term nursing care are the knowledge and skills that they have acquired throughout their long lives as well as their experience with nursing systems.

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This study was conducted to clarify matters producing anxiety in care-needing elderly people who are left alone at home during the day when cohabiting household members go to work. The study results clarify how elderly people cope with that anxiety. A semi-structured interview was administered to 9 elderly people receiving visiting nursing services who were left alone at home during the day. Interview data were analyzed qualitatively and descriptively. The results revealed that, because of their physical impairments and being alone, these elderly people left alone at home during the day spent time affected by anxiety derived from [accident-prone daily life], [unwanted and restricted environment], [quiet and lonely space], and [isolated and idle life]. As problem-focused coping for the anxiety, these elderly people were taking actions aimed at independence to spend time safely by themselves, such as [moving into action on their own initiative so as not to be at a loss when being alone] and [imagining what response they could make]. As emotion-focused coping, because anxiety of elderly people left alone at home during the day cannot be resolved in many cases without help of some kind, they were trying to alleviate anxiety and maintain their mental balance by [letting situations pass] and [sorting out their feelings when spending time alone] while waiting for household members to return home.

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This research aims to clarify the actual conditions regarding the application and acquisition of research funds such as Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research (hereafter, KAKENHI) from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology by members of the Japan Academy of Gerontological Nursing (JAGN). A self-administered, anonymous questionnaire was sent by mail to 1,014 individuals belonging to research and education institutions, and surveys from 299 respondents were analyzed. Between FY2011 and FY2013, 77.4% applied for KAKENHI, with 53.8% succeeding in acquisition. The most commonly selected research field at the time of KAKENHI application was "gerontological nursing." The most commonly chosen keywords were "gerontological nursing." Many terms concerning dementia nursing, end-of-life care, and hospital discharge support were suggested as keywords that should be newly established in "gerontological nursing." In regard to research promotion, even 25% of respondents who had acquired KAKENHI felt that it was "extremely difficult" to "create a research team" and "acquire a research site." The results of this study suggest there is a need for JAGN to conduct activities to facilitate the application and acquisition of research grants by members.

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