Association of Medical Doctors of ASIA, founded in 1984, Consultative Status with UN ECOSOC since 1995

As of 25 July 2018, AMDA’s relief teams have been working in three locations in Okayama, namely, Sunwork Soja (Soja City), Okada Elementary School (Mabicho) and Mabi Community House Sono Branch (Mabicho), all of which were heavily affected by the downpours that struck West Japan earlier this month. In addition, AMDA’s medical personnel have been stationed at Mabi Kinen-Byoin Hospital (Mabicho) to help the facility’s daily activities.


Activity report (24 July 2018):

-Acupuncture treatment (Okada Elementary School):

On the 24th, 12 people received the acupuncture treatment provided at AMDA Care Room set inside Okada Elementary School in Mabicho, including four people who experienced acupuncture for the first time. The evacuees seemed to be increasingly tired due to the prolonged evacuation life, clearing work and cleanup under the extreme heat.

Almost 20 days have passed since the disaster struck, and this has taken a toll on the well-being of the evacuees as they have been forced to stay in the closed environment for such a long period. It is obvious that their physical pain and dullness have been worsened because of such a living condition. Some of them made positive remarks about the progress of their clearing work. However, the severity of the damage to their houses and the progress of rehabilitation greatly differ depending on the household, and this eventually increased their frustration. For those whose farms were affected, the loss was tremendous as they have practically lost their income source. AMDA hopes to take such conditions into consideration and wish to provide relief not only physically but also mentally by talking and listening to what they have to stay during the acupuncture treatment.

-Massage service and footbath (Okada Elementary School):

For the last ten-plus days, massage and footbath services have been provided at AMDA Care Room besides the acupuncture treatment. This day alone, nine people received the massage and 14 people used the footbath. Except for four people who came to receive the massage for the first time, the rest had been the regulars to the service. Just like the acupuncture treatment, therapists and relief personnel try to communicate with the people in hopes to relieve their mental stress.

-Health-related assistance (Sunwork Soja):

As of 24 July, 39 people from 18 households have been seeking shelter in Sunwork Soja, AMDA has dispatched one health worker and one coordinator from the onset of the disaster to provide health-related assistance. The team is working closely with the local health workers to monitor the conditions of the evacuees while organizing the daily physical exercises to maintain their well-being. They also corresponded with rehabilitation experts at the time of their visit. AMDA will be providing coherent assistance by carefully grasping the needs of those who are withstanding the test of time.

-Nighttime nursing rounds (Mabi Community House Sono Branch):

The nighttime rounds and nursing care provided by one AMDA nurse and one staff from DWAT (Disaster Welfare Assistance Team) have been continued since the evening of the 23rd (8am to 8pm). The team is working hard to put at ease the elderly people who need toilet assistance at night (They were evacuated from the nearby nursing home). It has also been a great help for the care workers from the nursing home who had to constantly look after them.

-----------------

Being part of *AMDA’s Platform for the Great Nankai Trough Disaster, municipalities and organizations such as Kuroshiocho Town in Kochi Prefecture, Kaiyocho Town in Tokushima Prefecture, Seto Kenshin Clinic (Kagawa), and Sakura Clinic (Tokushima Prefecture) have been rendering support.

(*AMDA’s Platform for the Great Nankai Trough Disaster is a disaster-response platform which AMDA established in preparation for the expected Nankai Trough Disaster which is said to hit Japan in the near future.)