Association between awareness of government notification and ‘negative hepatitis virus test result card’ and implementation of hepatitis B and C screening in Japanese workplaces: a cross-sectional study
- 1Department of Preventive Medicine, Tokai University School of Medicine, 143 Shimokasuya, Isehara City, Kanagawa 259-1193 Japan
- 2Department of Ophthalmology, The Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
- 3Hepatitis Information Center, The Research Center for Hepatitis and Immunology, National Institute of Global Health and Medicine, Japan Institute for Health Security, Ichikawa, Japan
Abstract
Background: ‘Request for cooperation on measures against viral hepatitis in the workplace’ (the notification) was issued to provide hepatitis screening opportunities in workplaces. However, employees may take hepatitis tests multiple times because the results are not recognised. ‘Negative hepatitis virus test result cards’ (NHVC), designed to certify negative results for hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) tests, were developed to decrease multiple screenings. We aimed to examine the association between word awareness of the notification/NHVC, and hepatitis testing opportunities provided by employers, as well as the knowledge regarding hepatitis and the presence of employees with HBV/HCV infection.
Methods: An online questionnaire survey was conducted in Japan in March 2024 among executives and human resources personnel. Having or lacking word awareness of the notification/NHVC was defined as responding as ‘know about it/heard of it’ or ‘never heard of it’ to these items. The number of employees with opportunities for hepatitis testing, number of employees with HBV/HCV, and number of correct answers in hepatitis quizzes were assessed. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated using logistic regression to examine associations of word awareness of the notification/NHVC with providing hepatitis testing and hepatitis quiz answers, while examining the association of employees with HBV/HCV with word awareness of the notification/NHVC.
Results: Respondents (n = 1,500) with word awareness of the notification/NHVC had higher odds of providing hepatitis testing opportunities (notification: OR: 9.63, 95% CI: 7.34–12.6 and NHVC: 10.8, 8.12–14.4) and correct responses (OR: 1.87, 95% CI: 1.49–2.34 and 1.45, 1.15–1.83, respectively) compared to those who were unaware, after adjusting for occupation (executives/human resources personnel) and company size. Respondents with employees with HBV/HCV were more likely to be word-aware of the notification /NHVC than those without such employees (OR: 6.42, 95% CI: 4.62–8.93 and 4.9, 3.59–6.68, respectively).
Conclusions: Word awareness of the notification/NHVC was positively associated with hepatitis testing, correct responses, and the presence of employees with HBV/HCV in companies. It also aided in identifying workplaces with greater engagement in hepatitis testing. Future studies should investigate barriers to hepatitis screening and relevant interventions.
Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-026-28932-7.
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BibTeX
@article{nakazawa2026association,
title = {{Association between awareness of government notification and ‘negative hepatitis virus test result card’ and implementation of hepatitis B and C screening in Japanese workplaces: a cross-sectional study}},
author = {Shoko Nakazawa and Kosuke Sakai and Kota Fukai and Yuko Furuya and Kei Sano and Masayuki Tatemichi and Masaaki Korenaga},
journal = {BMC Public Health},
year = {2026},
month = aug,
doi = {10.1186/s12889-026-28932-7},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-026-28932-7},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Association between awareness of government notification and ‘negative hepatitis virus test result card’ and implementation of hepatitis B and C screening in Japanese workplaces: a cross-sectional study
AU - Shoko Nakazawa
AU - Kosuke Sakai
AU - Kota Fukai
AU - Yuko Furuya
AU - Kei Sano
AU - Masayuki Tatemichi
AU - Masaaki Korenaga
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/08/07
JO - BMC Public Health
DO - 10.1186/s12889-026-28932-7
UR - https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-026-28932-7
AB - Background: ‘Request for cooperation on measures against viral hepatitis in the workplace’ (the notification) was issued to provide hepatitis screening opportunities in workplaces. However, employees may take hepatitis tests multiple times because the results are not recognised. ‘Negative hepatitis virus test result cards’ (NHVC), designed to certify negative results for hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) tests, were developed to decrease multiple screenings. We aimed to examine the association between word awareness of the notification/NHVC, and hepatitis testing opportunities provided by employers, as well as the knowledge regarding hepatitis and the presence of employees with HBV/HCV infection. Methods: An online questionnaire survey was conducted in Japan in March 2024 among executives and human resources personnel. Having or lacking word awareness of the notification/NHVC was defined as responding as ‘know about it/heard of it’ or ‘never heard of it’ to these items. The number of employees with opportunities for hepatitis testing, number of employees with HBV/HCV, and number of correct answers in hepatitis quizzes were assessed. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated using logistic regression to examine associations of word awareness of the notification/NHVC with providing hepatitis testing and hepatitis quiz answers, while examining the association of employees with HBV/HCV with word awareness of the notification/NHVC. Results: Respondents (n = 1,500) with word awareness of the notification/NHVC had higher odds of providing hepatitis testing opportunities (notification: OR: 9.63, 95% CI: 7.34–12.6 and NHVC: 10.8, 8.12–14.4) and correct responses (OR: 1.87, 95% CI: 1.49–2.34 and 1.45, 1.15–1.83, respectively) compared to those who were unaware, after adjusting for occupation (executives/human resources personnel) and company size. Respondents with employees with HBV/HCV were more likely to be word-aware of the notification /NHVC than those without such employees (OR: 6.42, 95% CI: 4.62–8.93 and 4.9, 3.59–6.68, respectively). Conclusions: Word awareness of the notification/NHVC was positively associated with hepatitis testing, correct responses, and the presence of employees with HBV/HCV in companies. It also aided in identifying workplaces with greater engagement in hepatitis testing. Future studies should investigate barriers to hepatitis screening and relevant interventions. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-026-28932-7.
SN - 1471-2458
ER -