TOKYO - Amid mounting financial strain and work reform policies, Japan’s university hospitals are struggling to maintain the quality of their medical research, threatening the future of healthcare in the country. A recent survey of approximately 3,000 physicians working in university hospitals revealed that 60% spend less than five hours a week on research, with 22% reporting zero research time. The main reason: they are simply too busy with clinical duties to conduct research.
This imbalance stems from a growing financial crisis at university hospitals, where both patient care and research are core responsibilities. Many hospitals are operating in the red due to rising labor costs and inflation. Among the 42 national university hospitals in Japan, 25 reported negative cash flow, with total deficits reaching 21.3 billion yen. In order to survive, hospitals are prioritizing revenue-generating clinical work, often at the expense of research.
Suzuki, a physician affiliated with a municipal university hospital, explained that research for future patient care requires deep, uninterrupted thought. "But if the hospital collapses financially, nothing can continue. We’re forced to see more patients just to keep the hospital running," he said. "That leaves no time for research, so we end up working at night, cutting into sleep. But when your brain isn’t functioning, good research is impossible."
Japan’s declining research capacity is already reflected in international metrics. In 2000, Japan ranked fourth globally in the number of high-impact clinical medicine papers, behind the U.S., U.K., and Germany. By 2020, it had fallen to ninth place. Additionally, Japan has a higher share of papers that are rarely cited, suggesting declining influence in global medical research.
Another blow came in April last year, when new workstyle reform regulations were extended to physicians. Previously, there was no upper limit on overtime, but now it is capped at 960 hours annually. This has added further administrative burdens on university hospitals, which now have to strictly monitor physician work hours, complicating efforts to balance research and clinical duties.
The combined pressures of economic survival, limited working hours, and shrinking research output are fueling fears that Japan’s healthcare quality could deteriorate unless systemic changes are made.
Source: テレ東BIZ
