Suggestion of an in-house mentoring scheme as a solution to mental health problems of employees in Japan

Recent changes in mental health policies within Japanese organisations have been marked by the introduction of Work Style Reforms, however, workplace mental health still faces significant challenges, including an excessive reliance on psychiatric treatment and cultural stigma surrounding mental health in Japan. This commentary, therefore, suggests an in-house mentoring scheme as a solution, facilitating conversations about mental health in a dyad format. Though this scheme has been proven effective mostly in western countries, our professional experiences indicate it can be applied to the Japanese contexts. Considering the serious impact of COVID-19 since 2020 on employee mental health and the increasing emphasis on workplace communication, this commentary offered timely insights into the improvement of mental health among Japanese workers.