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	<< Back "DAWN" Newsletter of The DAWN CENTER The elderly supporting NPOs in Kansai Let us introduce some of the NPOs based in the Kansai area and engaged in unique activities to support the elderly: an NPO which aims to establish a mutual aid system based in local communities with the help of retired male volunteers, an NPO which helps the elderly ponder how to end (i.e. complete) their lives and offers various kinds of assistance to them, and an NPO which established the first old peoples' home for Korean residents in Japan. Dairenji Temple:The Civic Group Pondering on the "Ending*" of Life Izumi Tanaka, Director of Dairenji   There are many things to decide on at the completion stage of life. What kind of medical and nursing care one wants to receive, whether one demands one's right to die with dignity, how one wants to divide one's inheritance, and what kind of funeral one wants. And how about a grave? In Japan, people have traditionally been buried in their family grave, which has been taken over from generation to generation. However, this tradition is beginning to fade away and "eitaikuyo" graves, with which Buddhist temples take care of graves and hold annual services for the dead instead of families, have been on the increase. The family structure has been changing greatly, with an increasing number of young people not getting married and an increasing number of married couples not having children. Today, people are more concerned about how to lead a meaningful life as an individual and how to end their life in their own way. In particular, elderly women, who have long supported the Japanese family institution, are interested in the self-decision made at the completion stage of life. Considering these situations, a civic group based in a Buddhist temple called Dairenji Temple in Osaka was formed to support people in their completion stage of life. This group is composed of several NPOs which deal with problems concerning the completion stage of life. People buy personal graves located inside Dairenji Temple while they are alive, and part of the earnings are used to support the activities. Participating NPOs include an organization which holds workshops to enable patients to actively participate in the medical treatment they are receiving as well as offering telephone medical advice, an organization which offers consultation and workshops on tax, inheritance and money, an organization which promotes hospice care at home and a guardianship system for adults, and an organization which studies and offers support services aimed at introducing funerals held by friends and acquaintances instead of family members. These NPOs link one another on the Internet, offer consultations and take turns holding seminars on their specialized topics. http://www.inochi-club.com *We regard the completion stage of life as "ending." Activities of Aiai-net Masaharu Inoue, Chairman of Aiai-net It is natural for people to help each other. The NPO "Aiai-net" is a mutual aid group which aims to establish a system under which healthy senior citizens live a fulfilling life after retirement using a skill they have acquired during their career, deposit the time they spend doing volunteer activities and withdraw the deposit (i.e. receive nursing care) when they get older and physically weaker. We are convinced that establishing such a mutual aid system based in local communities and promoting collaboration among local governments, residents' associations, volunteer groups and NPOs is the key to turn Japan into a spiritually affluent nation. We are involved in health care, welfare, child-raising, town-building and home help services for the elderly, handicapped and children. We provide services mainly in Miki City, Ono City and surrounding areas in Hyogo Prefecture.(Membership: 20 men and 39 women as of March 2003) Many of our male members joined our group after retirement and are engaged in the following activities: 1. weeding gardens, pruning back garden trees, cleaning windows, washing screen doors 2. taking people to and from hospitals, taking people to and from stores and to help them do shopping, taking people to and from banks and administrative agencies Generally men work outside and women cook, wash, and clean rooms. Facing an aging society, we feel the necessity to hold various kinds of workshops to help men learn how to cook and how to help others do housework. Starting with thoughts on "death" and placing an emphasis on "how to live now," we will keep on making efforts. Special Elderly Nursing Home "Kokyou no Ie" Social Welfare Corporation "Kokoro no Kazoku" (Family of the Heart) Park Young-tae, Director of Support Projects We want our residents to be free and unique in their own way. At a special elderly nursing home "Kokyou no Ie", we consider one's ethnicity as one's personality. We offer welfare services, respecting one's individuality and personality. Korean elderly women residing in Japan have long been discriminated against and excluded from the Japanese welfare system. At our home, young Japanese caregivers warmly look after Korean elderly women in need of care. When "halmeoni" (a Korean word for an elderly woman) says "I'm happy I'm alive" and smiles brightly, it encourages caregivers, creating a strong bond between them. At a home which reminds them of their homeland, Korean elderly women are living happily with their Japanese counterparts. In 1989, Motoi Tauchi (Yun Ki), incumbent director general, shocked by a lonely death of an elderly Korean in 1984, established Japan's first old people's home for Korean residents called "Kokyou no Ie" with the help of many Japanese and Koreans. In 2001, at the request of elderly people in the region, a special elderly nursing home called "Kokyou no Ie, Kobe" was established which accommodates both Koreans and Japanese. We hope such facilities where Korean and Japanese elderly people live together will be established in other parts of Japan. "Kokyou no Ie" is a place where Japanese conscience, Korean brotherhood and transnational human love are joined together and bear fruit. We will appreciate your support for establishing more such homes as "Kokyou no Ie". Providing Hospice Care for the Terminally Ill Efforts Made in Yodogawa Christian Hospital in Osaka   Hospice originated in Britain. It was introduced into Japan in the 1980s and has developed medical care suited to Japanese medical practices and Japan's social system. As of July 2003, there were 119 hospice and palliative care units in Japan, with five of them in Osaka Prefecture. Yodogawa Christian Hospital in Osaka City was opened as Japan's second in-hospital hospice unit in 1984. It is intended to help patients with cancer and other incurable diseases spend peaceful days and live their lives fully till the end. A Dawn Center staff member interviewed Keiko Tamura, hospice chief of the hospital's nursing department. In Japan, family bond is so strong that family members and relatives don't need many words to communicate. They often live apart, but on ceremonial occasions like marriages and funerals, they quickly get together and exert a great influence on one another. When one family member becomes terminally ill, however, hidden problems within the family suddenly surface. Therefore, we place importance on the communication between a patient and our staff as well as the communication between his/her family and our staff. We always try to offer medical care that meets each patient's needs. We make every effort to alleviate pain, and when the patient feels a little better, he/she can leave the hospital and spend a certain period at home if he/she wishes. Furthermore, a support group for bereaved families is available, where families of patients who passed away at our hospital meet doctors and nurses in charge and share pain and sorrow. In the past, the burden of nursing a sick family member was traditionally imposed on a daughter-in-law or a daughter. Although this tradition still survives, we sometimes see a man who quits his job to take care of his sick wife. Moreover, although the number is small, men who lost their wives at a hospice help one another by holding regular meetings or attending cooking classes together so that they can support themselves. While respecting the Japanese culture, we will continue to support terminally ill patients and their families. Page Top Copyright (C) DawnCenter. All Rights Reserved.