Chino, Japan, Oct. 6, 2020 – On a late September night, I was rushed by ambulance to a local general hospital for what later turned out to be a no life-threatening physical condition and stayed one full next day to make sure of full recovery. The stay confirmed my theory that hospitals, including ones hundreds of kilos away from major urban centers, have become bureaucracy-infested to the point of affecting future Japanese medical and pharmaceutical development as medical practitioners spend far more time for documentation than treating patients.
After arriving at the hospital, I was examined and given initial due treatment. As I was breathing a sigh of relief in an emergency room staffed by half a dozen doctors and nurses, one of the first things they asked me was whether I had with me a National Health Insurance certificate that all residents in Japan are supposed to hold. I replied affirmatively.
Doctors checked my blood pressure, run an EKG test, took blood samples and all other protocols that an emergency room patient gets. BP was higher than normal understandably but other data showed no abnormalities except a slightly over-active kidney condition. To stabilize, the doctors gave me a mild saline IV drip.
That treatment done, the doctors asked my medical history, family and other pieces of information. The chief physician asked me whether I wanted to stay overnight. Since I wanted to make sure of full recovery, I said yes. Half an hour later, a nurse came to explain about my hospital stay asking me to sign a paper ‘the In-Patient Treatment Plan.’ I obliged and signed the document that detailed my conditions, treatment, an expected hospital stay.
A while later, I was moved to a bed adjacent to the emergency room. There, a different nurse came and explained what kind of tests to run, how and what kind of treatment they plan to give me in every conceivable detail. He then handed me the ‘Treatment Plan’ that detailed more than what he explained, such as ‘fluid management’ and ‘treatment assistance.’ Whatever they were.
As I tried to catch sleep, a separate nurse visited me and she did some explaining and asked me to sign yet another document, this time, ‘the Hospital Release Assist Plan’ that outlined a set of practices needed for release.Then finally, I was moved to the general in-patient bed area.
But that was not the end of paper stacking! Next morning, a nurse visited my room and handed me the ‘Release Treatment (Instruction) Plan,’ which asked me to return to the hospital to see the doctors in charge should ill conditions grip me again.
The last time I stayed at a hospital was nearly 20 years ago, for a few days of examinations. I recall the only paper I had to sign was one on admittance and was given a simple in-hospital life needs such as bringing your own toothbrush, razors and headsets for listening to the radio or watching the TV.
I did not bother asking the hospital whether documentation work was affecting the productivity of doctors and nurses. One thing that I learned was that my medical bill was much higher than I had anticipated and that I should make efforts not to become sick or injured!
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Insight Into the Future