Principle

Our work applies both quantitative and qualitative research methods to understand complex multifaceted factors underpinning community health.
Our work “imports” and “exports” model health programs between Asian and Western regions.
Since the Great East Japan earthquake, we have been working closely with public health nurses in Fukushima, helping them respond appropriately to health issues related to a nuclear power plant accident.
地域の人々の健康を規定する複雑な要因について理解するために、量的および質的分析手法を用いた研究を行います。国内外のエビデンスを国際的な視点から比較検討し、海外の介入プログラムを日本に「輸入」（または日本のプログラムを海外に「輸出」）して実施・評価します。震災後は、福島県内各地域の保健師と協働での地域保健活動も行っています。

Major topics

Family planning, parenting support, capacity building of health professionals, health literacy
主な研究分野は、家族計画、育児支援、人材育成、ヘルスリテラシーです。

Selected publications (since 2015)

Yoshida K, Honda K, Goto A, Kawachi I. Collateral health effects of loneliness care in Japan. Health Services Research & Managerial Epidemiology. 2024; 11: 23333928241240970.

Honda K, Abeysinghe S, Leppold C, Lloyd Williams A, Ozaki A, Goto A. Ethically researching health and disaster: Lessons from over a decade of research since the 3.11 disaster in Fukushima. Japan Medical Association Journal. 2024; 7(2): 279-281.

Ito S, Okabe S, Goto A. Attitudes toward future motherhood among female college students in Fukushima Prefecture at seven years after the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident. Radioprotection 2023; 58(4): 271-279

Goto A, Satoh K, Reich MR. Two pills and Women’s Health in Japan. The Lancet Regional Health - Western Pacific. 2023; 40; 100946.

Lam PV, Goto A, Vuong TNT, Nguyen ATQ, Nguyen TQ, Quynh Hoa Vu QH, Yokokawa H. Evaluation of Vietnamese written materials for diabetes prevention and management in Ho Chi Minh City. Health Literacy and Communication Open. 2023; 1:1, DOI: 10.1080/28355245.2023.2274593

Kuroda Y, Goto A, Sugimoto T, Fujita K, Uchida K, Matsumoto N, Shimada H, Ohtsuka R, Yamada M, Fujiwara Y, Seike A, Hattori M, Ito G, Arai H, Sakurai T. Participatory approaches for developing a practical handbook integrating health information for supporting individuals with mild cognitive impairment and their families. Health Expectations. 2023; 27: e13870.

Arai T, Goto A. Parents’ needs and satisfaction levels for parenting support schemes provided by local government: secondary analysis of cross-sectional survey data. Journal of Primary Care and Community Health. 2023; 14: 21501319231199978.

Goto A, Lloyd Williams A, Okabe S, Murakami M, Machida M, Koriyama C, Nollet KE. Beyond radiation anxiety and country borders: applying health literacy in the field after the Fukushima nuclear disaster. Annals of the ICRP. 2023.

Kinoshita L, Goto A, Okabe S, Satoh K, Honda K, Ueda K, Murakami M and Nollet KE. Daily meals in context: a quantitative analysis of elementary school students' drawings. Frontiers in Communication. 2023; 8: 1008108.

Kuroda Y, Goto A, Koriyama C, Suzuki K. Association of health literacy with anxiety about COVID-19 under an infectious disease pandemic in Japan. Health Promotion International. 2023; 38: daac200.

Ishii K, Goto A, Yoshida-Komiya H, Ohira T, Fujimori T. Postpartum mental health of mothers in Fukushima: insights from the Fukushima Health Management Survey (FHMS) 8-year trends. Journal of Epidemiology. Journal of Epidemiology. 2022; 32: 64-75.

Honda K, Murakami M, Takebayashi Y, Sakuma J, Goto A. Uncertainty among families of patients with cerebrovascular diseases in Japan: association with quality of life and background characteristics. Aging Clinical and Experimental Research. 2022; 1-9.

Yoshida K, Nakamura K, Hoshi G, Kanke S, Goto A, Kassai R. Primary health care practitioners’ perception of patient loneliness in Japanese older adults: a cross-sectional study. Social Science & Medicine – Population Health. 2022; 19: 101143.

Mori M, Ishii K, Goto A, Nakano H, Suzuki K, Ota M, Yasumura S, Fujimori K. Factors associated with smoking relapse among women in Japan from pregnancy to early parenthood. Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic, and Neonatal Nursing. 2022; 5: 428-440.

Machida M, Murakami M, Goto A. Differences in data trustworthiness and risk perception between bar graphs and pictograms. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2022; 19: 4690.

Goto A, Lloyd Williams A, Okabe S, Koyama Y, Koriyama C, Murakami M, Yui Y, Nollet KE. Empowering children as agents of change to foster resilience in Community: Implementing “Creative Health” in primary schools after the Fukushima nuclear disaster. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2022; 19: 3417.

Watanabe K, Goto A, Ishii K, Yoshida-Komiya H, Ito S, Ota M. Implementation and evaluation of life-planning lecture to enhance perspective-taking among high school Students: a school-based nonrandomized waitlist intervention study in Japan. JMA Journal. 2021; 4: 339-346.

Koyama Y, Goto A. Vietnam-Japan collaboration from a global perspective: a report on 2019 Epidemiology Research Training Course in southern Vietnam. Journal of Global Health Science. 2021; 3: e10.

Yoshida K, Goto A, Takebayashi Y, Murakami M, Sasaki M. Father-child bonding among Japanese fathers of infants: A municipal-based study at the time of the 4-month child health checkup. Infant Mental Health Journal. 2021. 2021; 42: 705-717.

Goto A, Yumiya Y, Ueda K. Feedback assessment from the audience as a part of the health literacy training for health professionals: a case from Fukushima after the nuclear accident. Annals of ICRP. 2021; 50(suppl): 167-173.

Arai T, Goto A, Komatsu M, Yasumura S. Incidence of and improvement in inappropriate parental behaviors of mothers with young children: a retrospective cohort study conducted in collaboration with a local government. Archives of Public Health. 2021; 79: 37. 

Kuroda Y, Goto A, Koyama Y, Hosoya M, Fujimori K, Yasumura S, Nishigori H, Kuse M, Kyozuka H, Sato A, Ogata Y, Hashimoto K. Antenatal and postnatal association of maternal bonding and mental health in Fukushima after the Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011: the Japan Environment and Children’s Study (JECS). Journal of Affective Disorders. 2021; 278: 244-251.

Goto A, Yumiya Y. Public health nursing in Japan: lessons from the past and present. Sasakawa Peace Foundation USA. May 7, 2021. https://spfusa.org/research/public-health-nursing-in-japan-lessons-from-past-and-present/

Goto A, Surkan PJ, Reich MR. Challenges to changing the culture of parenting in Japan. Journal of Epidemiology. 2020; 30: 427-428.

Benski C, Goto A, Reich MR. Developing health communication materials during a pandemic. Frontiers in Communication. 2020; 5: 603656.

Sato H, Goto A, Murakami M, Kawabata Y. Development of a pediatric dermatology screening tool based on two parent-reported skin symptoms: Comparison of parental recognition and physician diagnosis of skin symptoms of infants and toddlers. Journal of Primary Care and Community Health. 2020; 11: 2150132720974883.

Terui T, Yoshida K, Sasaki M, Murakami M, Goto A. The association between fathers' self-assessment of their own parenting and mothers' recognition of paternal support: a municipal-based cross-sectional study. Journal of Epidemiology. 2020. doi: 10.2188/jea.JE20200108.

Goto A. Communicating health information with the public: lessons learned post disaster. Journal of Global Health Science. 2020; 2: e6.

Ohba T, Goto A, Nakano H, Nollet KE, Murakami M, Yoshida K, Yumiya Y, Honda K, Kuroda Y, Kumagai A, Ohira T, Tanigawa K. Implementing eHealth with radiation records: a new support package for evacuees returning to areas around the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station. Radioprotection. 2020; 55: 291-295.

Goto A, Lloyd Williams A, Kuroda Y, Satoh K. Thinking and acting with school children in Fukushima: implementation of a participatory theater approach and analysis of the experiences of teachers. JMA Journal. 2020; 3: 67-72.

Ishii K, Goto A, Watanabe K, Tsutomi H, Sasaki M, Komiya H, Yasumura S. Characteristics and changes in the mental health indicators of expecting parents in a couple-based parenting support program in Japan. Health Care Women International. 2020; 41: 330-344.

Yumiya Y, Goto A, Murakami M, Ohira T, Rudd RE. Communication between health professionals and community residents in Fukushima: a focus on the feedback loop. Health Communication. 2020; 35: 1274-1282.

Goto A, Tsugawa Y, Fujimori K. Factors associated with intention of future pregnancy among women affected by the Fukushima Nuclear Accident: analysis of Fukushima Health Management Survey data from 2012 to 2014. Journal of Epidemiology. 2019; 29: 308-314.

Goto A, Lai AY, Kumagai A, Koizumi S, Yoshida K, Yamawaki K, Rudd RE. Collaborative processes of developing a health literacy toolkit: a case from Fukushima after the nuclear accident. Journal of Health Communication. 2018; 23: 200-206.

Baba S, Goto A, Reich MR. Looking for Japan’s missing third baby boom. Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology Research. 2018; 44: 199-207.

Goto A, Bromet E, M Ota M, Ohtsuru A, Yasumura S, Fujimori K. The Fukushima nuclear accident affected mothers’ depression but not maternal confidence. Asia Pacific Journal of Public Health. 2017; 29: 139S-150S.

Kashimura M, Goto A, Nollet KE, Ohto H, Yasumura S, Konno K. Who returns and becomes a regular blood donor? Analysis of a donor database in Fukushima, Japan. ISBT Science Series. 2017; 12: 340-348.

Fujisaki A, Goto A, Endo F, Muraishi O, Hattori K, Yasumura S. Practical index of urinary incontinence following Holmium laser enucleation of the prostate: a case-series study of the 24-Hour pad test immediately after catheter removal. Urologia Internationalis. 2016; 97: 310-319.

Henning M, Goto A, Chi C, Rudd RE. Community health workers as the critical building blocks for health system strengthening: a two-case study of innovative CHWs in Zambia and Japan. Journal of Communication in Healthcare. 2015; 8: 241-249.

Reich MR, Goto A. Towards long-term responses in Fukushima. Lancet. 2015; 386: 498-500.

Goto A, Bromet EJ, Fujimori K; Pregnancy and Birth Survey Group of Fukushima Health Management Survey. Immediate effects of the Fukushima nuclear power plant disaster on depressive symptoms among mothers with infants: a prefectural-wide cross-sectional study from the Fukushima Health Management Survey. BMC Psychiatry. 2015; 15: 59.