Supporting the Transition to New Situations

2019/06/20

I left the university I had attended since my student days and took up my post at this university in April 2017. While bewildered by the differences between national and private institutions, the number of students, and the curriculum, I managed to get through the first year with the support of those around me. By the second year, I was finally able to manage my workload, and now in my third year, I feel I am finally getting a sense of my surroundings. While some confusion due to environmental changes is inevitable, I might have acclimated to the work a bit sooner if I had taken an interest in education at other universities earlier, imagined the workload concretely, and scheduled accordingly before coming here. I have a troublesome nature of "not acting until the last minute."

"Discharge support," which I have researched for 20 years, is precisely the support for "transitioning to a new situation." Nowadays, with shorter hospital stays, an increase in chronic diseases, and the promotion of home care, many patients return home in physical conditions different from before their hospitalization—such as having residual paralysis or being told there is no prospect of a cure. Even when home care is desired, discharging while facing a body that does not move as intended and worrying about the progression of the illness is no easy feat.

However, if one can imagine life at home—rearranging or renovating rooms, preparing supplies, arranging medical and welfare services available at home, concretely envisioning the 24-hour life of oneself and one's family, and reflecting on how to spend a week, a month, or a year—it becomes possible to be discharged somewhat more peacefully. In such cases, having specialized discharge support staff, such as nurses with extensive medical knowledge and experience, allows for professional advice on medical conditions and care, helping to ensure a "soft landing" into life after discharge.

Ideally, it is vital to reflect on what one desires and what one's family thinks from the time one is healthy, in preparation for when one might become disabled or develop an incurable illness. This was traditionally called "Advance Care Planning," but the Japanese name "Jinsei Kaigi" (Life Meetings) has now been proposed, and the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare is putting effort into promoting it. However, there are likely many people like me who are slow to act until faced with a situation. I intend to continue my research on "support for transitioning care settings" so that I can address both preparation while healthy and preparation when the time comes.