Municipalities are promoting mental care programs and a handbook for use by local governments and medical institutions has been compiled by a research team of experts.
Walking into Sign with Me, a soup cafe in Tokyo, customers are greeted not by the typical irasshaimase shouts of welcome, but sign language and gestures from the courteous staff. The cafe's hearing-impaired owner, Masahiro Yanagi, 43, used to be a facilitator for hiring disabled ...
Chihiro Nishijima's cellphone rang one evening last May when she was away from Tokyo on a business trip. It was from the day care center in Tokyo where her 1-year-old son was. They told her he had developed a fever and they needed her to ...
An increase in the number of working mothers is prompting changes in the way parent-teacher associations operate. "Nobody spoke in the meeting; it was almost like a wake," said one mother, whose child attends an elementary school in the Tokyo metropolitan area, referring to a ...
A pack of motorcyclists leading the hearse of a fellow bike enthusiast; a small boat carrying the coffin of a fishing buff: Unique funeral arrangements such as these are starting to crop up in Japan as bereaved families add a personal touch and a ...
Many of today's women appear to be depending on smartphone applications to prepare for pregnancy or the birth of a baby, and to take care of or even discipline their children. Experts warn that parents shouldn't give smartphones to their infants to have them play ...
With a creative twist, the American practice of ringing doorbells on Halloween to ask for candy has become a crime prevention tool in some Japanese communities, where it helps to promote exchanges between kids, the elderly and others in the neighborhood. In Suginami Ward, Tokyo, ...
Department stores and other retailers are expanding their lineup of large-size clothes to meet growing demand among big women wishing to don fashionable apparel. Nissen Co., a leading mail-order company based in the city of Kyoto, opened a store in the Parco Part3 building in ...
Japan has taken another step to reverse its declining birthrate, as a law revision extending parental leave took effect last month with the hopes of encouraging fathers to play a larger role in raising children. Leave is now up to 14 months if both parents ...
There are emerging signs that the serious shortage in care assistants is abating, as statistics show the field's job offers-to-seekers ratio fell from 2.53 in December to 1.28 in June. People who have experience as care assistants but have worked in other fields are beginning ...
