The present circumstances of pediatric practice by family physicians in Japan: Cross sectional research.

Background: In Japan, pediatric primary care has often been provided not by general practitioners, but by specialists. Although official pediatric training of general practitioners started in Japan in 2018 no studies to date show the extent to which Japanese general practitioners are committed to pediatric care. Methods: We conducted a questionnaire survey on pediatric training and current pediatric practice for family physicians certified by the Japan Primary Care Association. Results: Of 1067 Japan Primary Care Association certified family physicians, 288 (27%) responded to the survey. More than 90% had received at least 3 months of pediatric training. Family physicians who completed 6 or more months of pediatric training provided significantly more pediatric care (p = 0.005). However, nearly 40% were currently not involved in pediatric care. Japan Primary Care Association certified family physicians are treating acute and chronic common diseases as well as diseases that may intersect with other departments. However, most respondents indicated there are not many opportunities to learn systematically about the care of these diseases. Conclusions: In Japan, general practitioners are still not actively involved in pediatric care, but they treat patients with diseases that make it difficult to determine the most appropriate department to see and a wide range of age groups. It will become increasingly important to provide learning opportunities and better training environments in these areas with related organizations.

Long-term clinical clerkship improves medical students' attitudes toward team collaboration.

Objectives: To examine the related factors associated with medical students' attitudes toward team collaboration. Methods: This cross-sectional study targeted medical students, residents, and doctors. A survey was conducted from 2016 to 2017 using the Japanese version of the Jefferson Scale of Attitudes Toward Interprofessional Collaboration (JeffSATIC-J), which evaluated "working relationship" and "accountability." We analyzed 2409 questionnaire responses with JeffSATIC-J items and the gender item. Analysis of variance was used for factors associated with the JeffSATIC-J score and Spearman's rank correlation coefficient for the relationship between educational intervention and the JeffSATIC-J score. Results: First-year students' scores were the highest (F(2, 2045) = 13.42 to 18.87, p < .001), and female students' scores were significantly higher than those of male students (F(1, 2045) = 21.16 to 31.10, p < .001). For residents' scores, the institution was not a significant variable. Female "accountability" scores were significantly higher than those of males (F (1,108) = 4.95, p = .03). Gender was not a significant variable for doctors' scores. Sixth-year students' scores were significantly correlated with the length of clinical clerkship (r(5)=.78 to .96, p<.05), with the exception of females' "working relationship" scores. The medical school with the highest JeffSATIC-J scores had the longest clinical clerkship in the community. Conclusions: These results indicate that long-term clinical clerkship in the community at higher grades is important in improving medical students' attitudes toward team collaboration. A qualitative study is required to confirm our findings.

What is the impact of the Rashomon approach in primary care education?: An educational case report of implementing dialogue and improvisation into medical education.

BACKGROUND: The excessive sub-divided or concrete pre-determined objectives found in the technological approach in contemporary medical education curricula may hinder the students' spontaneous learning about diverse needs and values in care. However, medical professionals must learn the diversity for care or a variety of social factors of the patients influencing decision making in daily practice. METHODS: We introduced a new method of curriculum development called the Rashomon approach. For testing the Rashomon approach, educational activities to teach the diversity in primary care were developed in four modules: 1) explication of the competency without specifying sub-objectives; 2) dialogue among multiple professional students; 3) visits and interviews of the patients; 4) dialogue with teachers' improvisation. The students' outcomes and responses were quantitatively and qualitatively analyzed. RESULTS: A total of 135 medical students joined this study in 2017. The descriptive data suggested that the key concepts of diversity in primary care were fully recognized and that the pre-determined general goals were achieved. Scores on the understanding of social factors in medicine, respect for other professionals, professional identity, and satisfaction with the course were very high. CONCLUSION: Instead of the technological approach, the Rashomon approach, in which only a general goal guides educational activities was used in this research. Improvisation and dialogue fit the approach and were potentially effective activities to learn the multifaceted practice of medicine. In an era of competency-based education, the Rashomon approach could be a very useful framework in primary care education.

Identifying the learning objectives of clinical clerkship in community health in Japan: Focus group.

BACKGROUND: The value of medical education in the community has been increasingly and globally recognized. In 2015, the World Federation for Medical Education emphasized the importance of medical education in various settings in their standard. Similarly, in Japan, the Model Core Curriculum for Medical Education in Japan (MCCMEJ) is revised in 2016. However, both the learning objectives of such clerkships and their concrete strategies in Japan are not clearly established. In this study, the authors identified the learning objectives of clinical clerkship in community health reflecting the perspectives of medical professionals and community inhabitants. METHODS: They held six focus groups that included physicians, other medical professionals, and inhabitants (n = 35) who were involved in a clinical clerkship in community health at three prefectures in Japan from 2017 to 2018. Further, they recorded, transcribed, and thematically analyzed the discussion using MCCMEJ as conceptual frameworks. RESULTS: The learning objectives comprised of 13 domains. The following four domains were not found in "Basic Qualities and Capacities for Physicians" in MCCMEJ: "future-oriented systematic view," "organic integration of knowledge/skill," "understanding of the community," and "awareness as an individual physician." CONCLUSION: With the community inhabitants' participation, the study results reflect the community needs in Japan. The authors hope that the outcome of this study will be useful to further improve clinical clerkship in community health.

Good clinical teachers in pediatrics: The perspective of pediatricians in Japan.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to identify the attributes of good clinical teachers in pediatrics (CTPs) in Japan, and to elucidate pediatricians and pediatric trainees' perceptions of these attributes. METHODS: The attributes of good CTPs were identified qualitatively by conducting a thematic analysis of questionnaires answered by board-certified pediatricians and pediatric trainees. The attributes identified were rated quantitatively by a large number of participants in both groups. RESULTS: Forty-eight individual attributes of good CTPs were identified, which were classified into three domains: personal, pediatrician, and teacher. The three domains and most of the attributes were consistent with previous studies. However, a few additional attributes, including "is kind/thoughtful toward others" and "defends trainees", which may be unique to pediatricians in Japan, were identified. Significant differences in the pediatricians' and trainees' perceptions of these attributes were elucidated: The differences were most noticeable for teacher attributes and least for personal attributes. CONCLUSION: Although most of the identified attributes of good CTPs in our study appear to be universal, there were significant differences in the pediatricians' and trainees' perceptions of good CTPs, especially in relation to teacher attributes. Our study provides additional bases for good CTPs and future faculty development, for enhanced pediatric clinical education.

Experience of receiving care by interns reduces psychological barrier of community residents to further care in Japan.

INTRODUCTION: A uniform certified basic training program for interns started in Japan in 2004. Following this change, more interns chose to train in community settings, including in rural areas. Patients' experiences of and attitudes toward interns' practice might vary across communities. To examine the geographic and demographic variations linked to the new training system, a nationwide cross-sectional survey was conducted and analyzed. METHODS: Two years after the start of the new certified basic program, 2400 adults were randomly selected from all areas of Japan. Those who participated were asked about their experiences of and attitudes toward interns' practice. The data were used to compare differences in geographic areas and by demographic factors. RESULTS: A total of 1109 (46%) people participated in the study. Of these, 10% (114/1109) had been treated by interns. In total, 37% (410/1084) of respondents were prepared to accept treatment from interns. Those with personal experience of receiving treatment from an intern were significantly more likely to be comfortable with the idea than those who had no personal experience (55%, p<0.001). This acceptance level did not vary by region or population (between urban and rural areas). People who were comfortable with interns providing treatment, and who had personal experience of care provision by interns (they or a family member had done so) were more likely to understand the importance of interns being able to practice as part of their clinical training (92% (p<0.001) vs 76% (p=0.006)). They were also more likely to believe that interns should be able to receive training at smaller hospitals (76% (p<0.001) vs 77% (p=0.02)). CONCLUSIONS: Acceptance by patients of interns' practice was positively associated with experience of care provision by interns. However, there was no significant difference of acceptance among geographic conditions, and among the size of population. Community-based medical education could be implemented and developed independent of geographic and demographic elements in Japan.

A Case of Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma Mimicking Primary Effusion Lymphoma-Like Lymphoma.

A 93-year-old female was transferred to the emergency ward of our hospital due to disturbance of consciousness and hypotension. Computed tomography showed bilateral pleural and pericardial effusion without evidence of tumor masses or lymphadenopathy. Cytodiagnosis of pleural effusion revealed proliferation of atypical lymphoid-like cells with pan-B surface markers. We suspected primary effusion lymphoma-like lymphoma; however, the monoclonality of these cells was not confirmed. Cytodiagnosis of bone marrow revealed lymphoma cells with monoclonal B-cell markers. These findings prompted a diagnosis of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma with bone marrow invasion. In the case of pericardial or pleural effusion, clinicians should consider carefully both hematological malignancy and its classification.

Recurrent TransIent Perivascular Inflammation of the Carotid artery syndrome with temporary carotid plaque on ultrasonography: a case report.

TransIent Perivascular Inflammation of the Carotid artery (TIPIC) syndrome is a rare syndrome with an unknown cause that is characterized by unilateral neck pain. Its existence as a pathological entity was controversial. We describe a 44-year-old male presenting with a 10-day history of right neck pain diagnosed recurrent TIPIC syndrome with temporary carotid plaque followed by ultrasonography.

Community and Interns' Perspectives on Community-Participatory Medical Education: From Passive to Active Participation.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The use of community-based medical education as a method of learning primary care is now common worldwide. However, in many cases community participation remains passive. This study sought to explore the effects of introducing community members into medical education as active teachers. Medical education taught directly by community members might be a key to comprehensive community-based learning. METHODS: This study was conducted in Japan at two postgraduate programs in community hospitals. We asked 10 community groups and 10 interns to join our 2-year "participatory" community curriculum continuously. Questionnaires completed by 10 interns and 77 community members were analyzed quantitatively. Audio-recorded and transcribed interview data from 10 interns and 39 community members were read iteratively and analyzed qualitatively. RESULTS: Community members who participated in groups with the interns gave higher scores on approval of and willingness to participate in such experiences. Interns scored higher on their view of the importance and preferences to work with the community. In the qualitative analysis, health-oriented behavior, social connectedness, and shaping community orientation among doctors emerged as important for community members. Important themes that emerged from the interns' interviews were: taking responsibility for shared understanding, community-oriented focus, valuing community nurses, and tension from competing demands. CONCLUSIONS: Interaction between interns and community members had positive effects for both. Community-participatory medical education could present a further step in the evolution of community-based medical education, one that is closest to community. Finding a balance between the time dedicated to working at the hospital and in the community proved to be essential to the success of this curriculum.

Diagnosis of myxedema coma complicated by renal failure: a case report.

Myxedema coma, caused by severe lack of thyroid hormone, is characterized by deterioration of mental status, hypothermia, hypotension, hyponatremia, and hypoventilation. We describe an 84-year-old woman who presented with renal failure and new onset severe hypothyroidism leading to challenges in the recognition of myxedema coma.

Quality of basic life support education and automated external defibrillator setting in schools in Ishikawa, Japan.

BACKGROUND: Automated external defibrillators (AED) have been installed in schools in Japan since 2004, and the government strongly recommends teaching basic life support (BLS). We therefore examined the quality of BLS education and AED installation in schools. METHODS: We conducted a prefecture-wide questionnaire survey of all primary and junior high schools in 2016, to assess BLS education and AED installation against the recommendations of the Japan Circulation Society. The results were analyzed using descriptive statistics and chi-squared test. RESULTS: In total, 195 schools out of 315 (62%) responded, of which 38% have introduced BLS education for children. BLS training was held in a smaller proportion of primary schools (18%) than junior high schools (86%). More than 90% of primary school staff had undergone BLS training in the previous 2 years. The most common locations of AED were the gymnasium (32%) followed by entrance hall (28%), staffroom (25%), and infirmary (12%). The reasons given for location were that it was obvious (34%), convenient for staff (32%), could be used out of hours (17%), and the most likely location for a heart attack (15%). Approximately 18% of schools reported that it takes >5 min to reach the AED from the furthest point. CONCLUSION: BLS training, AED location, and understanding of both are not sufficient to save children's lives efficiently. Authorities should make recommendations about the correct number of AED, and their location, and provide more information to improve the quality of BLS training in schools.

The new era of postgraduate certified general practice training in Japan.

This paper describes the background to, and the recent evolution of general practice as a recognised medical specialism in Japan (2015), and the evolution of a system of training to support this development. We, the general practitioners (GPs) in Japan have not been recognised as one body of medical specialists and have been training in our own way. A new certified training system will commence in 2018, authorised by a new third organisation, the Japanese Medical Specialty Board. An effective educational system has been developed for medical graduates that have a career intention in general practice that is distinct from other basic medical fields, but collaborates with them. A challenge exists to provide clarity to the Japanese population about what the specialty of general practice is, and what professionals in general practice can do for them. Japan currently has approximately 500 certified GPs and it is unclear at present what numbers will eventually be required. This paper reviews some of the challenges facing the development of general practice from the perspective of the Japan Primary Care Association.