Objective: In Japan, policies to ensure employment for persons aged 65 and older are being implemented. To facilitate the employment of older registered nurses working in hospitals, the understanding of registered nurses younger than 65 is necessary. We investigated the factors associated with the acceptance of employment of older registered nurses among registered nurses younger than 65.Materials and Methods: The subjects were female registered nurses younger than 65 working in 34 hospitals in Mie Prefecture. We distributed anonymous self-administered questionnaires. We conducted factor analyses of both respondents’ opinions on the employment of “Registered nurses aged 65–69” and “Registered nurses aged 70–74”. Multiple regression analysis was conducted to examine the associations between the “Acceptance of employing registered nurses aged 65–69” and “Opinions on the employment of registered nurses aged 65–69” (Statistical model 1). Moreover, multiple regression analysis was also conducted to examine the associations between the “Acceptance of employing registered nurses aged 70–74” and the “Opinions on the employment of registered nurses aged 70–74” (Statistical model 2).Results: Using factor analyses, the same factors were extracted for both, “Registered nurses aged 65–69” and “Registered nurses aged 70–74”. These factors were: “Health and job performance”, “Utilization of the knowledge and experience of older registered nurses”, “Reducing the workload burden of registered nurses”, and “Manners of older registered nurses”. Using multiple regression analyses, “Health and job performance”, “Utilization of the knowledge and experience of older registered nurses”, and “Reducing the workload burden of registered nurses” were significantly associated with “Acceptance of employing registered nurses aged 65–69” (Statistical model 1). The same 3 factors were also significantly associated with “Acceptance of employing registered nurses aged 70–74” (Statistical model 2).Conclusion: Hospital managers must pay careful attention to these 3 factors.

Objective: To study the improvement of the mental health of Japanese male registered nurses, we investigated the predictors associated with the Japanese version of the 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12). For those predictors, we focused on environments with many female registered nurses and female patients’ refusal to accept nursing services from male registered nurses.Materials and Methods: This study was conducted in 93 hospitals in the Aichi, Gifu, and Mie prefectures of Japan. The analyzed subjects were 1,216 full-time male registered nurses. The average age (standard deviation) was 34.5 (9.2) years. Multiple logistic regression analysis was conducted. A GHQ-12 score of ≤3 indicated good mental health, and a score of ≥4 indicated poor mental health. “Mental health” was a dependent variable. The independent variables were: “Age”, “Male registered nurses as important partners on the job”, “Female registered nurses’ good manners toward male registered nurses”, “Fairness regarding male registered nurses’ promotions”, and “Female patients’ refusal to accept nursing services from male registered nurses”.Results: There were 728 (59.9%) full-time male registered nurses with good mental health and 488 (40.1%) with poor mental health. The mental health of the male registered nurses who had negative feelings regarding, “Male registered nurses as important partners on the job” was significantly worse, and that of those who had negative feelings regarding, “Female registered nurses’ good manners toward male registered nurses” was also significantly worse.Conclusion: Female registered nurses must recognize that their attitudes toward male registered nurses influence the mental health of male registered nurses. Hospital managers should provide male registered nurses who cannot establish appropriate relations with female registered nurses with consultation opportunities. Such organizational action by managers is necessary.

Objective: Enrollment in graduate schools presents a useful opportunity for registered nurses to enhance their expertise in their nursing field and gain better opportunities to achieve their desired career advancements. This study investigates the predictors associated with registered nurses’ interest in enrolling in master’s programs of nursing graduate schools.Materials and Methods: For the predictors associated with interest in enrolling in master’s programs of nursing science, we evaluated items related to registered nurses’ perceptions of their work environments and their impressions regarding master’s programs in nursing. The analyzed subjects were 3,611 female registered nurses working in 30 hospitals in Mie prefecture, Japan. Multiple linear regression analyses were conducted to investigate registered nurses’ predictors of interest in enrolling in master’s programs of nursing graduate schools. We included the variables with Variance Inflation Factor (VIF) less than (<) 2 in the statistical model.Results: Full-time nurses were more interested in enrolling in master’s programs than part-time nurses. Registered nurses who felt that they could keep up with courses in graduate schools, that they would be able to acquire skills to contribute to society, and that their colleagues were competent, showed stronger interest in master’s programs. Registered nurses who were under the impression that graduate school teachers were dedicated to their students showed lower interest in master’s programs. Registered nurses who felt that their superiors were competent and that they were expected to perform well by physicians also showed lower interest in master’s programs.Conclusion: Predictors significantly associated with registered nurses’ interest in enrolling in master’s programs of nursing graduate schools were determined. Further studies are required to gain a more detailed understanding of the nurses’ attitudes investigated.

Objective: To establish work environments that prevent Japanese nursing assistants from leaving their jobs, we investigated the associations between their job satisfaction levels and intentions to remain on their jobs.Materials and Methods: We distributed anonymous self-administered questionnaires to Japanese female nursing assistants in 30 different hospitals. Regarding job satisfaction, we investigated various items relevant to both intrinsic facets (e.g., gaining various experiences) and extrinsic facets (e.g., salary), and conducted factor analyses of those items. Standardized partial regression coefficients were then calculated using multiple regression analyses. Intention to remain on the job was the dependent variable for this study. The factor scores calculated by the factor analyses of job satisfaction and respondents’ characteristics were the independent variables. Since multicollinearity occurred, we utilized two types of statistical models. After questionnaires with one or more missing values were excluded, 618 questionnaires were analyzed.Results: Using factor analyses, we discovered six factors related to job satisfaction among nursing assistants: “Intrinsic motivation”, “Salary”, “Relationships among nursing assistants”, “Registered nurses’ attitudes”, “Fatigue reduction”, and “Opportunities for vocational skills”. In statistical model 1, “Intrinsic motivation”, “Salary”, “Fatigue reduction”, “Age”, “Employment status”, and “Certified care worker status” were significantly associated with “Intention to remain on the job”. In statistical model 2, “Salary”, “Registered nurses’ attitudes”, “Fatigue reduction”, “Opportunities for vocational skills”, “Age”, and “Employment status” were significantly associated with “Intention to remain on the job”.Conclusion: “Intrinsic motivation” and “Opportunities for vocational skills” are included in intrinsic facets. To prevent nursing assistants from leaving their jobs, raising only their extrinsic job satisfaction levels is insufficient. Because nursing assistants have not received formal nursing education, they cannot take pride in having the same skills and expertise as registered nurses. However, hospital managers must respect their feelings and establish an appropriate working environment.