Interview survey on the role of occupational physicians in the workplace during the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has had various impacts on businesses and workers. Occupational physicians (OPs) are expected to actively support employers' efforts to minimize the damage of the pandemic. However, there is little research on the role of these specialists during a pandemic. Clarification of the contributions of OPs to workplace health in the COVID-19 pandemic will be of value so that they can be effectively deployed the next time a similar significant emergency affects a large population. Methods We employed semi-structured interviews and qualitative content analysis of the interview transcripts. Twenty OPs were selected as priority candidates from among 600 OPs certificated of the JSOH, and thirteen who met the eligibility criteria agreed to participate. We extracted meaning units (MUs) from interview transcripts according to the research question: "What was the role of OP in the COVID-19 pandemic?" and condensed and categorized them. Results A total of 503 MUs were extracted from the transcripts. These were abstracted into 10 condensed MUs and two categories. Categories 1 and 2 dealt with “Role in confronting the direct effects of the pandemic” and “Role in confronting the indirect effects of the pandemic” and accounted for 434 (86.3%) and 69 (13.7%) MUs, respectively. Conclusion This study identified the role of OPs in Japan in the COVID-19 pandemic. The results showed that they made a wide range of contributions to the direct and indirect effects of the pandemic. We hope our findings will help OPs during future pandemics or other long-term emergency situations.