From Contract Staff to Full-Time Employee in Medical Administration

"I want to support hospitals, an indispensable part of society." With this single-minded focus, Chihiro Oda forged a path from a women's university to a vocational school, and then to Keio University Hospital. We spoke with Ms. Oda, who became a full-time employee after working as a part-timer and a contract staff member, about why she wants to continue her career here.

Including my time as a part-timer, I have been working at the Medical Affairs Administration Center of Keio University Hospital (Keio Hospital) for about five years. My career path is a bit unusual; I originally graduated from the Faculty of Economics at another women's university. At the time, something a seminar professor told me left a strong impression: "In Japan, with its aging population, hospitals are indispensable, but they can also face financial difficulties. While it may be difficult for you all to become doctors now, you can support them from a management perspective." This resonated with me, and after graduating, I enrolled in the medical secretary department of a vocational school. I wanted to be involved in hospital management.

The reason I chose Keio Hospital as my desired workplace was that my uncle was hospitalized there. The way the ward clerks treated my uncle was wonderful, and I felt it was a great hospital. Because of this, I chose Keio Hospital for my internship from vocational school, and the experience deepened my interest. I then applied for a contract staff position at Keio Hospital that was advertised at my school. Between being hired and officially starting, I joined the workplace as a part-timer. Later, as my contract term was ending, I interviewed for a full-time position, which brings me to where I am today.

My main responsibilities now involve invoice-related processing and building calculation systems. Keio Hospital sees about 3,000 outpatients a day, so we use a great number of systems, such as electronic medical records and medical accounting systems. My job is to link these systems, create an environment for smooth calculations, and organize the systems' internal structures. I work on this in collaboration not only with administrative departments but also with various doctors and other departments.

It's rewarding to see the systems I've developed go live and watch how they change and streamline the flow of people and operational methods. For example, accounting for tests and other non-surgical procedures used to be handled with paper slips. These slips were physically carried around on-site, and the billing staff would manually enter the details to calculate charges. Once this is systematized, everything can be done with a single click in the system. It's convenient, it reduces errors, and it allows us to go paperless. While there are certainly challenges in my work, it's exciting to witness these kinds of results.

Even when I was a contract staff member, my duties weren't particularly restricted, and I was able to get involved in many different things. Of course, since it was a fixed-term contract, I didn't join long-term working groups. However, I was often asked for my opinion by colleagues and senior staff who were participating in those activities, so it felt like I was providing support from the background. Each time, I would think things through together with the full-time staff from the same perspective, so rather than just performing routine tasks, I was proactively engaged in a variety of matters.

I'm currently working at Keio Hospital, but as a full-time employee, transfers are a possibility. Right now I'm at the Medical Affairs Administration Center, but I could potentially be transferred to the Yochisha (Elementary School) or SFC (Shonan Fujisawa Campus). I originally joined because of my interest in hospital management, but I think it would be interesting in its own way to be transferred to another campus. I expect that gaining new experiences in a new world will offer me a different perspective from what I have now.

One of the attractions of working at Keio, I think, is the "just right" balance between work and private life. I have tennis lessons every Thursday, and on that day, I have to leave the office by 6:30 p.m. to make it on time. My colleagues are very understanding and considerate, saying things like, "It's Thursday, so let's avoid evening meetings," or "You need to get ready to leave soon," which I really appreciate. Of course, I do have evening meetings on other days.

I think the employee benefits are also excellent. For women who may have children, many take childcare leave and then return to work. The Medical Affairs Administration Center, where I currently belong, in particular has a reputation for making it easy to take childcare leave. I've even heard from someone who returned after her leave that "it was easy to come back to work." Perhaps because of this environment, I have the impression that the employee turnover rate is low.

Keio might have an impersonal image, but the actual workplace atmosphere is very welcoming. There are events like tennis and district-level baseball tournaments sponsored by the Health Insurance Association, and participation is voluntary. I've joined in before, and they're a lot of fun.