Current Status of AIDS Measures in Japanese Companies

• Published in: Journal of Occupational Health Vol. 39; no. 1; pp. 66 - 67
• Main Authors: Muto, Takashi, Umetada, Yoichi, Sakurai, Yoshiki, Nagumo, Atsuko, Fukuwatari, Yasushi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Tokyo JAPAN SOCIETY FOR OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH 1997; John Wiley & Sons, Inc
• Subjects: AIDS; AIDS measures; HIV; Japanese companies; Occupational health
• ISSN: 1341-9145; 1348-9585; 1348-9585
• DOI: 10.1539/joh.39.66

The estimated median of cumulative AIDS cases (excluding cases in hemophiliacs) in Japan for the year 2002 is 3,500, and the estimate for HIV carriers (excluding AIDS patients) is 18,300 1). Because 90% of people with AIDS (PWAs) are between 20 and 50 years old, not a few Japanese companies will have an employee who has AIDS or is infected with HIV in the future. Every company will have to take appropriate measures to prevent problems presented by AIDS. It is important to know the current status of company AIDS measures in order to devise an AIDS policy, but only limited knowledge has been accumulated to date on the subject 2,3). This study was performed to elucidate the current status of AIDS measures in the Japanese business community. Methods The subjects of this study were all the Japanese companies listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange as of April, 1993 (n= 1,655). We developed a questionnaire having 29 multiple-choice questions to clarify the current status of AIDS measures. The questionnaire was mailed to the companies in June, 1993, requesting that it be filled out by the director of the personnel department. There was no identifying information on the questionnaire, but a number was printed on the stamped, self-addressed envelope enclosed with it to be able to send a reminder to companies that had not replied by the deadline. The data were analyzed with the computer software package Statistical Analysis System (SAS). Results We received 620 replies, a response rate of 37.5%. Manufacturing industries accounted for 58.4% of the total number of responding companies, and companies with more than 1,000 employees accounted for 72.7% of them.