Visiting A Hospital

VISITING A HOSPITAL 

Don’t worry if people try to persuade you to go to a hospital for things that seem to be quite minor. Most Japanese people will go to a hospital for ailments that you may usually only go to a local clinic for. Use your sixth sense. It has also been said that the smaller local clinics tend to be a bit old fashioned, and the doctors may not have kept up with all the most modern practices.

Wherever you go, you must take your medical insurance card. All JET Programme participants are covered under “Shakai Hoken” (Public Health Insurance), and have a card. You should carry this card around with you in case you are in an accident and need to be seen in an emergency. Take this card with you whenever you go to a medical facility so that you will receive the proper insurance benefits. If you forget to bring the card with you, just fill out the paperwork there and bring your card to the medical facility at your earliest convenience (you can still receive the same benefits).

When you get to the hospital you will need to fill out various forms (see following form for an English translation!) and you will be given a hospital card (which sometimes looks like a credit card). This will have all of your pertinent information on it and you need to take it every time you visit that hospital. Some JETs advise getting a card made early on in your stay (with the help of a Japanese speaker) so that later on if you have a medical issue that you don’t want others to know about, you can go to the doctor and not have to worry about filling out the initial Japanese paperwork on your own.

Although the staff in the hospitals are generally very friendly and helpful, the receptionists tend not to speak English. If at all possible you should try to take a Japanese speaker with you.

Emergency rooms are not likely to be as private as you are used to. Not all hospitals have Emergency Rooms, and if they do they are not necessarily open 24 hours a day. In Toyama City the 24-hour Emergency Room rotates in some hospitals. In the case of a daytime emergency go to the best hospital you know of in your area.

Always remember to take money with you when you go to a hospital – at least 5,000yen – as well as any previous prescriptions or packets of medicine.

DEALING WITH A DOCTOR

You should first try to find doctor who speaks your language (Chuo Hospital has Chinese, German, etc…). In the larger hospitals there are usually several of them and it will save a lot of problems if you can explain the problem in your native language. Often these doctors have studied abroad which tends to make them more receptive of western attitudes towards medicine (this is especially important if your concern is of a sexual nature).

If you are unable to find an English-speaking doctor (or doctor who speaks your language), refer to your JET diary for translation of medical terms and other helpful information. You may find that if you take a Japanese friend with you, they become extremely uncomfortable if you start to question the doctor. This is because in Japan, doctors are held in great respect (they are referred to as sensei). It is sometimes considered rude to question them, but they will not necessarily volunteer information about your condition so you should not feel inhibited about asking questions. Actually, at the larger hospitals, the doctors are well aware of the needs of their Western patients and are more willing to give you any information that you might want. However, if you feel uncomfortable with what is happening, I would suggest that you ignore cultural sensitivity, and ASK!

Often, doctors will prescribe a lot of medication that you may think is unnecessary. Ask if you are unsure what they are for. Some doctors do this as a gesture on every visit, and others because pharmaceutical companies give them a percentage for what they prescribe. Either way, use your discretion about what to take, but remember that if you start a course of antibiotics, you MUST finish it.

You are not obligated to take the medicine that the doctor gives you. You can return anything you do not use on the follow-up visit.

Fortunately in Japan, doctors will give you a thorough examination. At home, some doctors are all too ready to dish out pills and potions by just going on what you said. In Japan, they might hit you with hammers (gently!), squeeze your fingernails, or roll your arms around. You have to accept that although western medicine is widely used here, many old eastern methods are still very popular.

If you have a specific problem then you will get referred to a specialist. If you have a back problem, you see a back specialist or if you suffer from panic attacks you go to the psychiatrist. They have it all.

STAYING IN THE HOSPITAL

If you have to stay in the hospital, there are a few essential things that you should take (check with your doctor):

• Nightwear and robe
  
• Toiletries
• Towels (several)
• Bed sheets, although you can usually rent the futon and sheets
• Laundry soap
• Alarm clock
• Plate, cup, knife, fork, chopsticks
• Health card, alien registration card, money, phone cards
• Comfort items: books, mp3 player, teddy bear

When you leave the hospital, you should offer small gifts to the doctors and nursing staff. Sometimes they will not be accepted (some hospitals don’t like to encourage this), but it’s a good plan to offer anyway.

If you visit someone in the hospital you will need to know the visiting hours. Some hospitals don’t have them, but others are quite strict in enforcing them. Good presents to take are sweets and flowers, but DON’T take potted plants as these imply a long stay.

BEING SICK FROM WORK

Unfortunately, most hospitals are only open from 8:30 to 11:30 am. JET participants are all entitled to sick leave (byoukyu) by contract, but contracts differ slightly from person to person, so you should check your contract and consult with your supervisor beforehand. You may need a doctor’s note. (The note has been said to cost money, something like 3000 yen. However, it varies from place to place and my local practitioner does not charge me.)

Often you will find that the school will automatically take paid (nenkyuu) leave from you if you are ill. In the case that you are very ill and must take more than one day from school due to your illness, you can ask them to take sick leave (byoukyu) rather than paid leave. Sometimes you will find that they don’t even realize that it is a possibility since the Japanese teachers don’t have an equivalent in their contracts. One way to avoid suspicion is to go into school when you are ill and ask a teacher to take you to the doctor. That way they can see that you are really sick. Some ALTs have been known to even go and sleep in the nurse’s room, so that no one can say that they are not officially at school! You will find that teachers go into school even when they are apparently quite ill. Don’t abuse the privilege of sick leave. A cold is not really a good enough reason for staying away. But, if you really are ill, you are entitled to push for byoukyu rather than nenkyu.