The purpose of our study is to make clear when, where and how long Japanese hospital nurses take naps before night work (pre-work nap) when they work a day shift and a night shift consecutively.The day shift ends at 16:45 and the night shift starts at 00:00.To examine the effect of the pre-work nap on tiredness after night work (post-work tiredness) is another purpose.In our study, we analyzed the results of a questionnaire survey of 2, 001 hospital nurses working under an irregular three shift system.The results of our study showed that mean nap duration for all the nurses was 163.0 min.As the nurses'age increased, the percentage of nurses taking the pre-work naps decreased and mean nap duration also shortened.It was also found that the percentage for nurses with small children aged 0-5 years was very low and their mean nap duration was much shorter than that of unmarried nurses or married nurses without children.It was revealed that 28.7% of the all nurses took the pre-work nap in the hospital and the mean duration of napping in the hospital was much longer than that of napping at home.The mean nap starting time was 19:37 and the later the nap starting time was the shorter the mean nap duration was.As to the effect of the pre-work nap, when the nap duration was longer, sleepiness tended to occur later during night work .Pre-work napping for more than 180 min significantly lowered the mean score for post-work tiredness, compared to no napping, but a nap taken during night work (mid-work nap)was more effective than the pre-work nap for lowering the mean score for post-work tiredness.

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A self-administered questionnaire study of 333 workers (male 253, female 80)in a manufacturing company was carried out one month after informing the workers of the results of their medical checkups in 1993.The questionnaire included several items such as recalled abnormal findings of health examination and ways of overcoming the abnormal findings, recalled results of their medical checkups in 1992, self-confidence in their recollection of the results, and the usefulness of medical checkups.The following were investigated : the relationship between actual as well as recalled results of medical checkups in 1992 and the recollection of them after one year, the effects of examinations after medical checkups in 1992 on their recollection of the checkup results after one year, the effects of actual as well as recalled 1992 checkup results on the recollection of the results of their medical checkups in 1993, assurance of correct recollection of the results, the rerationship between the usefulness of medical checkups, explanation of abnormal findings and the percentage of correct answers to the results of medical checkups in 1993 one month after informing the workers of their results.It was found that the percentage of correct answers to the results after one month in 1992.The rate decreased with the increase in the number of abnormal items in medic checkups.Moreover, the rate also decreased when the results were abnormal.Further examinations in addition to the medical checkups influenced their recollection somewhat after one year.The results that the workers still remembered in 1992 had a stronger effect on their recalling the results one month after informing them in 1993 than the actual results in 1992.The workers' confidence in their recollection of the results was untrustworthy in the same way as their recollection of the results, and they were not able to maintain the recollection of the correct results, although many of the workers realized the usefulness of the medical checkups.Our results suggest that xplanation of abnormal medical findings in 1993 was effective because the percentage of partial concordance between actual and recalled results was much higher in the workers who received the explanation than in the workers who did not receive it.

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Eighty-one national forestry workers who were using chain saws, log cutting machines, bush cleaners, timber-collecting cable machines and forklifts were examined for their level of noise exposure in a working day by using a portable sound meter.And their noise exposure levels Leq (8h)for a year were estimated based on the measured noise levels and on the number of noise exposure days and hours in a year recorded in their work documents.The survey was made from July to December, 1988.The maximum noise levels with all the machines except a case of the forklift were above 100 dB, and with most chain saws they were above 110 dB.The amount of time that workers were exposed to the noise of logging and lumbering with chain saws, cutting by bush cleaners and timber-collecting cable machines without a cabin was longer than the allowable time for 90 dB and 95 dB.The number of noise exposure days in a year is fewer than reported in the past.The estimated Leq (8h) for 32 out of 34 lumbermen surveyed was more than 85 dB, and for 5 lumbermen the Leq (8h) was more than 90 dB.From these results, it can be concluded that there is a danger of noise induced hearing loss in national forestry workers using chain saws, log cutter, log cutting machines and timber-collecting cable machines without a cabin in 1987.

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In order to evaluate factors improving part-time industrial physicians'services, a questionnaire study on occupational safety and health services was conducted on 237 part-time industrial physicians (PIPs) and 628 enterprises in Kochi.PIPs who received physician's fees visited enterprises and consulted with employees about their health conditions, communicated with employers and licensed occupational health supervisors (LOHSs) in enterprises more frequently than PIPs who did not receive physician's fees (p<0.1-0.001).The rates of performing regular duties related on occupational safety and health, and PIPs'participations in health promotion programs and health consultations with employees among enterprises which paid physician's fees were significantly higher than those among enterprises which did not pay physician's fees (p<0.05-0.001).Significantly higher rates of health consultaion with employees and communications with employers and LOHSs, particitation in occupational safety and health committees, recommendations of health promotion programs were found where physicians visited enterprises frequently(p<0.1-0.01).Although no significant changes in PIPs'occupational safety and health services were observed for hazardous risk factors in enterprices, the rates of performing regular duties on occupational safety and health, and walk-through inspections by LOHSs and PIPs, estimating PIPs'advice and suggestions in enterprises with hazardous risk factors were significantly higher than htose in enterprises without hazardous risk fctors (p<0.05-0.001).It is important for PIPs to have a written contract concerning physicians'fees and occupational safety and health services with enterprises and visit enterprises frequently in order to improve PIPs' occupational safety and health services and promote occupational safety and health programs in enterprises.

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