Although participatory workplace improvement programs are known to provide favorable effects on high stress occupations like nursing, no studies have confirmed its effect using biomarkers. The aim of this study was to determine whether a participatory workplace improvement program would decrease stress-related symptoms as evaluated by biomarkers and self-reported stress among hospital nurses. Three actions to alleviate job stress, which were determined through focus group interviews and voting, were undertaken for two months. A total of 31 female Japanese nurses underwent measurement of inflammatory markers, autonomic nervous activity (ANA), and perceived job stress (PJS) at three-time points; before the program (T1), within a week after the completion of the program (T2), and three months after the program (T3). A series of inflammatory markers (Interferon-γ, Interleukin (IL)-6, and IL-12/23p40) decreased significantly at T2, and IL-12/23p40 and IL-15 significantly decreased at T3 compared to T1, while ANA and PJS remained unchanged. Our participatory program exerted beneficial effects in reducing inflammatory responses, but not for ANA and PJS. Further investigations with a better study design, i.e., a randomized controlled trial, and a larger sample size are warranted to determine what exerted beneficial effects on inflammatory markers and why other outcomes remained unchanged.

尽管众所周知，参与式工作场所改善计划可以对护理等高压力职业产生有利影响，但没有研究使用生物标志物证实其效果。本研究的目的是确定参与式工作场所改善计划是否会减少通过生物标志物和医院护士自我报告的压力进行评估的压力相关症状。通过焦点小组访谈和投票确定了三项缓解工作压力的行动，为期两个月。共有31名日本女护士在三个时间点接受了炎症标志物、自主神经活动（ANA）和感知工作压力（PJS）的测量；项目开始前（T1）、项目完成后一周内（T2）以及项目后三个月内（T3）。一系列炎症标志物（干扰素-γ、白介素（IL）-6和IL-12/23p40）在T2时显着下降，IL-12/23p40和IL-15在T3时较T1显着下降，而ANA和IL-15在T3时显着下降。 PJS 保持不变。我们的参与计划在减少炎症反应方面发挥了有益作用，但对 ANA 和 PJS 没有影响。有必要通过更好的研究设计（即随机对照试验和更大的样本量）进行进一步的研究，以确定哪些因素对炎症标志物产生了有益的影响以及为什么其他结果保持不变。