Misuse of emergent healthcare in contemporary Japan

Abstract

BackgroundMedical care is obviously an important public service to ensure the health of a nation; however, medical resources are not always used appropriately. ‘Convenience-store consultations’ and inappropriate ambulance transportation represent instances of such improper use by contemporary Japanese citizens in recent years. This article illustrates two examples of misuse and discusses potential countermeasures by considering factors contributing to these behaviours.Main bodyFrom both public and medical perspectives, these patient behaviours are problematic, causing potential harm to others, negative consequences to such patients themselves, exhaustion of healthcare staff, and breakdown of emergency medical services. Although citizens need to recognize the public nature and scarcity of medical care, the more immediate need may be to identify and to remove personal and social causes inducing such misuse. In addition, healthcare professionals should become more trustworthy. To combat these issues, one-sided penalties such as accusations or sanctions for patients who misuse the system cannot be justified in principle. If measures taken to prevent misuse are ineffective, imposing surcharges or restricting consultations may be considered official policy, but these are not acceptable for several reasons.ConclusionFor now, we conclude that we must rely on the spontaneous motivation of patients who engage in ‘convenience-store consultations’ and ambulance transportation instead of taking a taxi.

Prediction Model of Deep Learning for Ambulance Transports in Kesennuma City by Meteorological Data

“…Japan adopted a universal healthcare system in 1961 that guarantees patients free access to medical care, 1 and this free access system is proud of Japan. However, the medical staff has been recently exhausted because 1; some patients with mild illness consult doctors in the off-duty hours as so-called convenience-store consultations.…”

“…22 A previous report in Japan concluded that we must rely on the spontaneous motivation of patients. 1 The Need for Prediction of Daily Ambulance Transport…”

“…With the aging population in Japan, ambulance transport increases, which exhausts the health care system. 1 Therefore, the prediction of the ambulance transports is needed to save the limited medical resources. In Japan, weather, or meteorological factors are related to ambulance dispatches, the number of deaths, and traumas.…”

Burden of Unplanned Antenatal Visits in a Tertiary Hospital in Nigeria: Making a Case for an Improved Referral System

“…However, the implication of our finding is that obstetric patients with milder, non-obstetric conditions skip consulting primary or secondary care facilities to access care in the emergency departments of tertiary hospitals. This could result in an increase in the burden on the emergency room staff, making it more difficult for them to care for severely ill patients [11]. Educating the populace on what constitutes urgent obstetric complications, and providing accessible and effective care for medical/surgical issues, especially infectious morbidities occurring in pregnancy, at the secondary facilities are advocated.…”

“…Non-urgent use of the emergency department could be for conditions in which a delay of several hours would not lead to an increased likelihood of an adverse outcome [9]. Patients with such conditions, who could have been managed at primary or secondary levels of care, are seen in the emergency rooms of tertiary facilities, most of them by-passing the referral system [10][11]. This scenario has been associated with bogus healthcare spending, unnecessary diagnostic tests and therapies, and poorer patronage of lower tiers of the health care system.…”