Community Health Approach in the Rural District of Japan / 日本農村医学会雑誌

ABSTRACT

For the purpose of studying the systematization of community health care in the rural district, we made health examinations and investigations into labor conditions and daily life of women working in grape farms.<BR>The health conditions of the women working in grape farms were considerably unfavorable. They were compelled extremely busy lives including agricultural labor, households, childcare and nursing of the elderly who were lying ill in bed.<BR>The health examinations revealed the high prevalence of cervicobrachial disorder, lumbago, fatigue of the sensory-nervous system and some health hazards by agricultural chemicals, in addition to anemia and hypertention which show generally higher prevalence among farmers in Japan. Taking into account that the new technical know-how and agricultural chemicals will be more and more introduced to the intensive agricultural system, it will become important to raise the health level both through approaches of the community health and through industrial hygiene.<BR>The cooperative activities which we carried out with the Agricultural Cooperative Association, Municipality, Health Center, the Agricultural Mutual Benefit Association and the Agricultural Guide Center, improved the health condition, health care delivery system and participation of workers in the activities. These effects also proved the necessity of improving living conditions in parallel with the promotion of the comprehensive health care system.