[Tips to activate your laboratory technologists].
For about two decades, Japanese clinical laboratories have been suffering depression because of the government policy to reduce medical expenditure. Here are my proposals to re-vitalize laboratory science in Japan. (1) Do not keep laboratory technologists stay inside laboratories. Take them out to bedside to show what is going on. Show your technologists' face to medical professionals to experience clinical demand. (2) Invite doctors who cared severely ill patients to your laboratory. Every month my laboratory holds case study meetings using electronic medical records (EMR). Doctors and residents present how laboratory data saved the patient's life. Attending the meeting, laboratory technologists realize how they contributed to improve the patients' destiny. This "case study meeting" with EMR stimulates laboratory technologists to understand they are really one of major players in dramatic story of clinical medicine. (3) Establish a sophisticated industry of biotechnology. Populations of senior citizens are growing in all the developed nations in the world. The healthcare demand is very likely to increase. Because Japan is experiencing "aging society" most drastically, the Japanese could get the first major chance to develop new technologies to improve senior citizens' quality of life. The more government reduce medical expenditure, the less healthcare industry grows up. Without major biotechnology industry, the Japanese have to import expensive technologies from overseas. In conclusion, Japanese society of laboratory medicine, together with related industries should get united to appeal how they can contribute to the nation, in order to obtain appropriate fee, as an investment for future people's health.
Kimura
Satoshi
S
Department of Laboratory Medicine and Central Clinical Laboratory, Showa University Northern Yokohama Hospital, Yokohama 224-8503, Japan. sdkimura@med.showa-u.ac.jp
D007564:Japan; D013677:Medical Laboratory Science / Q000639:trends*