IMR Press / CEOG / Volume 39 / Issue 4 / pii/1630475818852-445102083

Clinical and Experimental Obstetrics & Gynecology (CEOG) is published by IMR Press from Volume 47 Issue 1 (2020). Previous articles were published by another publisher on a subscription basis, and they are hosted by IMR Press on imrpress.com as a courtesy and upon agreement with S.O.G.

Original Research
Ethnic disparities in perioperative management among foreigners residing in Japan
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1 Kobe University Graduate School of Health Sciences
2 Chibune General Hospital (Japan)
Clin. Exp. Obstet. Gynecol. 2012, 39(4), 442–447;
Published: 10 December 2012
Abstract

The objectives of this research were to examine the current status of perioperative treatment among foreigners, to elucidate the health status/outcome disparities that contribute to ethnic differences, and to recommend counter-measures to rectify these ethnic disparities. The authors identified 36 non-Japanese and 111 Japanese females who underwent gynecological surgery from 2004 to 2009 at a single institution. Electronic medical records were reviewed and telephone survey was conducted in order to obtain patient background, preoperative, operative, and postoperative data. The non-Japanese group showed significantly larger number of uninsured, shorter length of stay (LOS), higher rate of emergency surgery, and higher cases of spinal anesthesia. There were significant differences in length of residency in Japan and LOS among four foreign countries. Seventy-nine percent of patients contacted by phone understood informed consent from doctors, 73.7% understood explanation in operating room (OR), and 84.2% understood explanation from anesthesiologists. This research was the first survey of the ethnic disparities in perioperative management among foreign patients treated in Osaka. The authors have demonstrated differences in operative method, emergency surgery, anesthesia, and American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status (ASA-PS) due to the difference in disease structure, language, and culture. It is recommended that the barriers between non-Japanese patients and medical staff are rectified during the perioperative period when mutual understanding is needed the most.
Keywords
Foreign-residents in Japan
Perioperative
Gynecological surgery
Ethnic disparities
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