Development of an area diagnosis tool for promoting home medical care ＜CategoryI＞
Project Director ： Hideki OTA
Chief Director, Medical Corporation ASMss
（Length：3years）
Project goals
① Development of area diagnosis tools for promoting home medical care
② Holding educational seminars to promote home medical care to the public
③ Creation of communities where people can live until the end of their lives if they wish
Project overview
Japan's highly aged society is changing expectations for healthcare and the roles it plays. People have begun to question hospital care that seeks only to prolong life even when there is little hope of recovery. As expressed in the phrase "from cure to care," the importance of home medical care that guarantees quality of life is receiving another look.
Our lead researcher has provided home medical care for 20 years as a medical practitioner, utilizing various social resources in the community and building networks with various organizations to offer 24-hour 365-day support based on visiting nursing until death.
Most Japanese people prefer to recuperate in the homes they have grown accustomed to until the end of their lives. Even if doctors agreed to that, however, home medical care is not a generally accepted form of medical care. We therefore hope to elucidate the reasons and demonstrate policies for building a community that accepts home medical care.
Medical Corporation ASMss selected Yuki City in Ibaraki Prefecture and Tochigi City in Tochigi Prefecture, which provide equivalent home medical care. It is necessary to discover the elements that promote home medical care and the elements that hinder it while comparing the two cities. Through this area diagnosis, we can learn the issues that must be addressed in order to promote home care.
The diagnosis tools are 1) providers of medical and nursing care, 2) recipients of services, 3) systems, 4) the attitudes of basic local governments and systems for regional partnerships, and 5) cultural traditions. Multiple parameters will be set in each of these five domains. We will evaluate local ability to promote home medical care and attempt to resolve issues. At the same time, we hope to create a foothold for home medical care by carrying out educational activities to change the public's attitude towards such care.
Stakeholders
Jichi Medical University
Juntendo University
Sano College
一般社団法人 コープ福祉栃木
Medical Corporation ASMss
有限会社 オリーブ（訪問看護ステーション）
Medical Green
Kuranomachi Community Care Work Shop
栃木市トータルサポートセンター
Yuki City Council of Social Welfare
社会福祉法人 スイートホーム
Japan Network of Home Care Supporting Clinics
Community spotlight: Tochigi City, Tochigi Prefecture and Yuki City, Ibaraki Prefecture
A view of Yuki City
A view of Tochigi City
Tochigi City in Tochigi Prefecture (the population of 80,000 increased to 140,000 with the city's merger with Ohira, Tsuga, and Fujioka in April 2010) and Yuki City in Ibaraki Prefecture (population 50,000) are both northern Kanto cities with great tradition. They are located in the northwest of the Kanto Plain. From Oyama Station, where the Tohoku Shinkansen bullet train has a stop, the Ryomo Line runs west through Tochigi City, while the Mito Line runs east through Yuki City. Although the cities are part of the greater Tokyo metropolitan area, agriculture is the main industry, and people still speak with a distinctive accent. The cities are part of the same cultural and commercial spheres. Tochigi City is nicknamed Little Edo and is still home to many ancient warehouses that have become a tourist attraction. Yuki City is famous for its woven silk cloth and still retains many old buildings.
Housing conditions, which influence the home care environment, are good. There is also a high percentage of three-generation homes, which increases ability to provide care.
