The Clinic is closed, but OIST told Okinawa Prefecture that it’s open

The Okinawa Times

13 March, 2019

Takashi Abe

In October 2018, OIST submitted an application to Okinawa Prefecture’s Chubu Public Health Center claiming that OIST has re-opened its Clinic, contrary to the actual situation. It is assumed that OIST was attempting to avoid the complicated procedures for re-opening the Clinic that would be required if it remained closed for more than one year. Okinawa Prefecture says it will confirm the facts and will provide instruction, if necessary.

OIST May Have Sought to Avoid a Complicated Procedure

OIST first opened its clinic in August, 2015, to provide emergency medical treatment to OIST personnel, but since August 2017, there has been no physician, so the clinic has remained closed ever since. In October, 2018, a new physician arrived and OIST applied to re-open the clinic under the name of CEO Peter Gruss. However, the clinic has in fact remained closed, as has been announced both inside and outside OIST. Based on the medical treatment law, the Prefecture can revoke a clinic’s authorization, if it remains closed for more than one year without a legitimate reason. OIST applied to re-open its Clinic one year and two months after it ceased operations, so it is possible that OIST may have decided to short-cut the process. According to the Prefecture, the procedure for terminating and then re-opening the Clinic will be much more complicated than simply re-opening it within the one-year limit. In response to the Okinawa Times’ question, OIST said that the new doctor arrived in October, 2018, and that since then he has been providing medical treatment, such as emergency treatment and health consultation. OIST claimed that the clinic has been “open” by virtue of having provided this medical treatment. However, the Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare explained that minor emergency treatment and health consultation do not constitute medical practice. In 2012, OIST Graduate University opened, aiming to become a world-class university. Japan and Okinawa Prefecture provide full support as part of the Okinawa Promotion Project, one of the central government major projects. Currently there are 918 faculty and staff members (as of January, 2019), and 174 students as of September, 2018.