American College of Physicians Japan Chapter Interim Report 2020
Women’s Committee
Chair: Noriko Yamamoto MD, FACP
Report: What we have done:
The Women’s Committee has 10 members including 4 male members. We started out with 6 female members from 2017 July. I am pleased to increase the male members. That’s because the female members don’t know how the male physicians feel about something female physicians work and struggle. And when the male members talk about their confusion to attend some problem with female physicians on our mailing list, female members notice their confusion and find their own problems and other obstacles .I think it’s important that such a mutual understanding keep going for long time, moreover the male and female physicians will get to sympathize each other.
Session Plan:
This June we couldn’t hold the annual session of Japan Chapter, we have a plan to hold the session at next annual meeting. We collaborate with the Physician’s Well-Being Team and have a plan to hold the work shop about physician ‘s Burn-out.
Facebook Page
We have the Facebook page. We post the news and articles of ACP and other information, news about gender inequity.
Woman in Medicine Month (September)
We recommended a FACP from women’s members on September, Dr. Naoko Iwasaki MD.
Plan: What we are going to:
We will hold the session about communications at the workplace next meeting. We are making the details of this session concretely. We collaborate with the Physicians Well-Being Team; we might have the workshop about physician’s Burn-out and coaching next year except annual meeting. I want to increase more female FACPs in Japan Chapter. I wish many female physicians will have activities in ACP Japan Chapter vividly, I will recruit some members for Women’s Committee next term.
We planned to hold the session about communications at the workplace. But the annual session of Japan Chapter cancelled. We discussed the theme of the session on the mailing list actively. Then we would like to encourage young female doctors to hold the session. Dr. Matsumoto and Dr. Tsunemitsu will initiate the session and other members will cooperate with them. I can’t write the theme in detail now .But next year they will hold the excellent session.
Second, we will plan to hold another session or lecture to join the Physicians-Well Being Team. The Physicians –Well-Being Team made the questionnaire about the physicians Burn-Out on line. They performed that and analyzed the data and will organize the data and write the paper. And they planned to hold the session about Burn-out and coaching with Women’s Committee together.
We have our group page of the ACP Japan Women’s Committee at the Facebook. We are posting the news and information about gender equity of women’s physicians and ACP.
2, Plan
1, We will hold the session about communication at the workplace on the annual session of Japan Chapter next June. We will support the young female doctors to hold the more session they plan and pursue.
2, We will collaborate the Physicians-Well-Being Team to hold the session about Burn-Out and Coaching at annual session.
3, We would like to increase the numbers of female FACP. We encourage women’s physician to drive for becoming FACP. We think the measures for that women’s physicians can hold the session at the annual session of ACP Japan chapter by themselves and women’s physicians can join the activities of the Japan chapter without reserve.
1, Become the best hospital many doctors would like to work at.
NPO Corporation Director Dr.Toshiko Takino, MD
2, How the maternity leave system works in the US and how to keep work-life Balance?
Sapporo Tokusyuukai Hospital Dr. Shadia Constantine, MD FACP
3, Diversity management of the Palliative care Division at Iizuka Hospital.
Iizuka Hospital Palliative care Division Director Dr. Hideyuki Kashiwagi MD
4, The approach at Tokyo Women’s Medical School, Now and then, in future. From medical education to re-training as physician after any leave.
Tokyo Women’s Medical School Center of the Adult Diseases. Professor Dr. Noako Iwasaki, MD
5, Career Support multiply Patients Safety equal Work style Reform to have approached For 12 years at Okayama University medical school.
Okayama University medical school Professor Dr. Hitomi Kataoka.MD
First speaker Dr. Takino has the corporation E-J net to measure the functions to work comfortably in the hospitals for female physicians. That is called HOPIRATE by Dr. Takino. She told why she has begun this program, she was a physician of gastroenterology and almost got burn-out when she was working the hospital by fulltime back in her days. She said recently young doctors has been changing to make much of work-life balance and female doctors make things of their personal life , they don’t take care of the patients around time of their return. Other male doctors compensate the patients care after female doctors left and they must work till late hour. The male doctors feel nuisance for that and think female doctors make trouble but are not useful. So HOPIRATE has changed the marks for measurement about working with high motivation not only the conditions of work place with childcare facilities, short time working. The hospital where female doctors are working cheerfully will gather good nurses and office workers and they get more fixed at the hospital, increase the number of patients, they will get more incomes and be happy.
Next speaker is Dr. Shadia Constantine. She was graduated from medical school of Panama and got her residency at US. She has come to Japan as the teaching stuff of the medical education and has three young kids. She told about the maternity leave system in the US. Most of all female physicians can take the maternity leave for about 8weeks. She is working as a teaching physician in Japan and learning at Oxford University.
Third speaker Dr. Hideyuki Kashiwagi has a certified MBA and qualification of social welfare. He affirmed not to admit the stereotype for previous winner. He declare the vision and mission of their division and he and his subordinates pursue to achieve them. He always try to get his subordinates engagement, stimulate their mindsets, share their Why thing. He gave the example the Mikoshi model, Mikoshi is portable shrine. 5 people keep to shoulder the Mikoshi and 2 people come to join, 7 people carry the Mikoshi comfortably but then they feel heavy strangely, 2 person hang the Mikoshi and load them. He told to start conducting easy issues he could do although they have many tough issues.
Fourth speaker Dr. Naoko Iwasaki is Professor of the Tokyo women’s medical school. Tokyo women’s medical school is very unique because the only female students study to become doctors and they perform to educate to become good female doctors and live their lives as doctors. They continue to educate their students why they want to become doctors, they must keep working as physicians. They have had some surveys for alumni association what you are doing. They especially told young female students must have the motivations to become good doctors. Also they perform the work-style reform to go back home at 18 o’clock.
Last speaker is Professor Dr. Hitomi Kataoka. She has a 2 years old baby. She has been working the MUSCAT career center at Okayama University medical school for 12 years. In rural area in Japan the numbers of doctors is running short, in city area especially Tokyo area the numbers of doctors is too much. She think the working doctors now in Okayama don’t quit and keep working with any personal conditions. Most of all doctors think they must work for their local patients because local medical care will collapse if they would quit to work. She told we have to balance between doctor’s well-being and local medical care continuity. They need the supports from their family, comprehension from co-workers. She told when female doctors is increasing in the hospital the female doctors got to have more motivation for upper titles of academic societies.
We held this long time symposium for about 130 minutes, but I didn’t feel too long. 5 doctors talked different issue from various viewpoints. I felt they all talked we need to change our perception for our well-being and social rules. Generation X and young generations have different wishes and lifestyles. But we will avoid to collapse the local medical care, Dr. Iwasaki and Dr. Kataoka have been working for medical education and making mediating center for re-job placement for long time. It would be most difficult and important that we must have been working for long time to change people’s mindset for equity in gender. But now we must take action for this issue with our colleagues and families.
I felt their each efforts are very venerable they have been working on their own identities. But I felt sorry the participants were very small this day. I think young doctors want to go to the educational sessions. They seem to think the work-life reform is not their issues, older peoples like directors and professors must think and perform that for young doctors. I don’t think young doctors don’t need to involve this issue I rather think they must involve this issue for themselves. And work-style reform is not only for female physicians. I think all the physicians must involve and think of this matter and take actions for it. The hospital that female physicians work comfortably and actively will gather good nurses and co-medical staffs and increase the numbers of patients and incomes. And I think the critical point about work-life reform is Patients First. I think we don’t forget we are working for the patients, not only to increase our medical knowledges and practices for ourselves. We must have the balance between personal life and work. But that will not always keep same balance. Sometimes doctors will make a thing of the work as physician but another time they will make a thing of the personal life. This seems long time challenges. But I think at this matter the important thing is physician’s Professionalism. I think we physicians must keep going upon the Professionalism. And we have to keep up with fast pace of daily life and receive the diversity, I think we have to change the mindset and stereotype about gender .That would be much more challenges.
Finally I would like to thank you for the 5 speakers. And I appreciate to Dr. Noriko Kawashima she designed this symposium and I admire her intelligence and networks. The members of our committee had meetings for respective charge and conducted their own ideas. I am very proud of them and appreciated.
ここ2年くらいACPでは9月にWomen In Medicine Monthというキャンペーンをしています。同時に支部長の推薦により女性メンバーをFACPにしてあげられるという機会を設けています。今年は日本からお一人を推薦することができましたがACPの活動に加わってくださる女性医師を増やして頑張る方にはぜひFACPになるチャンスを差し上げたいと思っています。
Report from Women’s Committee about panel discussion at the annual session of ACP-Japan
June 2018,
ACP Japan Women’s Committee Chair; Noriko Yamamoto,MD FACP President of Yamamoto Clinic
ACP Japan Women’s Committee
Chair; Noriko Yamamoto, MD FACP
Co-Chair;Noriko Kawashima, MD FACP
Member;
Yuko Morishima, MD FACP,
Keiko Arai, MD FACP
Eri Kimura, MD
Panel Discussion; Meet the women physician leaders
3 June Sunday AM9:15 to 10:40 at Tokeidai Hall of Kyoto University
Panelist;
Yuko Takeda, MD FACP Professor of Jyuntendou university medical education
Mariko Ooishi, MD PhD President of 0oishi internal medicine clinic
Harumi Mukai, MD PhD Medical director of Abbvie GK.
Facilitator; Yuko Morishima, Keiko Arai
This panel discussion is aimed super female doctors talk about their work and life for young doctors.
Dr.Takeda had medical practices in USA and she became the professor of medical education back home in Japan.
Dr.Ooishi has been a medical practitioner for long time and she has been researched diabetic patients status and outcomes, for recent 10 years she has started diabetic medical coaching.
Dr.Mukai is a hematologist worked for many years at medical school of University of Tsukuba. She has changed her job to medical director of English Pharmaceutical company.
Three doctors are superwomen , the participant said how super they are! They talked very interesting stories about themselves and we were fascinated by their stories. Both Dr.Takeda and Dr.Ooishi said troubles have certain reasons to happen and it’s important to overcome them.
Next, the facilitators asked some questions.
Why did you want to be a doctor?
What was your most difficult events? And how did you manage it?
What was your turning points ?
What do you have attentions to direct your subordinate as leader?
What is your best time to relax?
At last, Co-Chair Dr.Kawashima had some Power Point presentations about Physician’s leadership and women’s communication.
I regret the time for this session was too short , we couldn’t have enough time to ask some questions from participants and comprehend their substantial words. But we all had a very good time. The panelists have a lot of interest and energies for medicine and family matters, we’re also fascinated by them. Among their talk we learned a lot and moved very much.
The session by Women’s Committee would be believed for only women. But the problem of women in medicine would be also a big problem for men’s doctors. For example in work environment and regulations, work style and work-life balance. In Japan we need the reform of working style in medicine in these days.
On the other hand, medical organizations and colleges must set female executives definitely. And Japanese people will require mentor-mentee relationship more. But most of Japanese female is reserved and has no self-assertion. Japanese female doctors would need the advance to be assertive, not to be intrusive and have confidence because they have enough competence.
Time is changing, in Japan female doctors are getting more increasingly. But most of female doctors feel isolated and are not sure of their behavior for promotion and negotiation. It’s often said no female Role-Model around them to give them some advice.
We ACP Japan Women’s Committee have begun last July and we have very short duration to go into activities as committee, but we think we need to make networking and mentorship in ACP Japan. We made our page in Facebook, the name of ACP Japan Women’s Committee. When we called to join the group of Facebook page,many female and male doctors joined the group. We were very encouraged by them.
We will keep working for not only female doctors but also male doctors. We hope to achieve the equity in medicine in Japan.
Yuko Morishima MD, FACP, Division of Clinical Medicine Department of Pulmonary Medicine, University of Tsukuba
Eri Kimura,MD,Iizuka hospital
Report;
We has started the activity of Women’s committee on late July 2017.
We hold the panel Discussion at the annual session of ACP Japan Chapter (Today)
3 Women’s Leader talk and discuss important and tough subjects what young female doctors take great interest . They will give many tips to young doctors and medical students.
*We opened a page of Facebook as ACP Japan Women’s Committee(Closed Group)
Plan;
Next year we will hold a session to encourage young female doctors and students
In the annual session of ACP Japan chapter.
We will recruit some members this year.( es,young doctors and medical students)
We will have a plan to make a networking of female doctors and medical students in ACP Japan Chapter. We will be able to have mentorship among the chapter in the future. We also will utilize our facebook page.
