Friday, January 18th, 2013 Hospitals in Japan: Mixing Public and Private Acute Care Delivery

Description

Japan’s healthcare system is considered to be one of the world’s best. It is relatively inexpensive, accounting for less than 10% of its GDP, despite offering high levels of service to the world’s oldest population. Like Canadians, Japanese have access a universal system. But its financing is more “public” than Canada’s, comprising about 80% of outlays, compared with just over 70% in Canada.

Hospitals, which sit at the centre of Japanese care delivery, are all not-for-profit. However, they feature a broad mix of owners: public (national, prefectural, municipal, universities), semipublic (e.g. Red Cross, public health insurance organizations), and private (corporations, universities and individuals). This provider mix, which has existed for more than 100 years, has contributed positively to healthcare quality, innovation and sustainability. This talk addresses the question: Do private providers contribute positively to Japanese healthcare?

James (Jim) H. Tiessen is Associate Professor, School of Health Services Management, at the Ted Rogers School of Management, Ryerson University, where he served as Director, MBA. He earned degrees at the University of Alberta (B.Sc.), Guelph (M.Sc.) and York University’s Schulich School of Business (Ph.D.). Prior to joining Ryerson, he was on the faculty of the DeGroote School of Business, McMaster University for 10 years. Prior to his university career, Jim lived in Japan and later worked for the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO). Dr. Tiessen’s research has been published in the Journal of Business Venturing, International Marketing Review, Canadian Journal of Administrative Studies and other journals. He has served as President of the Japan Studies Association of Canada. He is a visiting Scholar at the Asian Institute, Munk Centre of Global Affairs, University of Toronto (2012-13). In fall 2012, he was a visiting research fellow at the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research, Tokyo Japan. Dr. Tiessen studies Japanese healthcare, particularly its hospitals, which sit at the centre of that system. He teaches courses on healthcare management, research methods, strategy and international business.

Dr. Ken Kato is Senior Researcher at the Aichi (Prefecture) Medical Association Research Institute in Japan. He is interested in community health policy, and healthcare information and patient report outcomes. His current research focuses on homecare for senior citizens, particularly developing a practical approach to facilitating inter-professional coordination of these activities. Raised in Japan, he earned a Bachelor of Science in Sociology from Texas A&M University in 1999, Master of Public Health from the University of Texas School of Public Health in 2003, and PhD in Medical Sciences from Nagoya University in 2010.