Yamada Yoshiko, Sekiya Minobu
Japan Foundation for Aging and Health.
J Aging Soc Policy. 2003;15(4):113-29. doi: 10.1300/J031v15n04_05.
Shortages of direct care workers have been of concern both in the United States and in Japan. This article compares issues surrounding long-term care provisions in the two countries and introduces Japan's unique licensure and certificate system for direct care workers. Japan has established three levels of direct care worker certificates and a direct care licensure, which can be potentially used as a career ladder. Studies show that this system has resulted in different work conditions and benefits between different certificate and licensure levels but had a limited impact on hourly wage and task differentiation. Implications for the United States are also discussed.
直接护理人员短缺的问题在美国和日本都受到关注。本文比较了两国长期护理服务相关的问题，并介绍了日本针对直接护理人员的独特执照和证书制度。日本设立了三个级别的直接护理人员证书和一项直接护理执照，这有可能用作职业晋升阶梯。研究表明，该制度导致不同证书和执照级别的工作条件和福利有所不同，但对时薪和任务分化的影响有限。文中还讨论了对美国的启示。
