Kikuchi Keifuen Sanatorium
Encyclopedia
Kikuchi Keifuen Sanatorium or National Sanatorium Kikuchi Keifuen is a sanatorium
for leprosy
patients or ex-leprosy patients at Kohshi-shi, Kikuchi-gun, Kumamoto-ken, Japan
founded in 1909. The mean age of residents (ex-patients) is about eighty.
-ken, Fukuoka
Prefecture, Ooita Prefecture, Saga
Prefecture, Kumamoto Prefecture, Miyazaki
Prefecture and Kagoshima Prefecture. In this area, Kumamoto was selected as the site of the sanatorium
.
The two main reasons for the leprosy prevention law were that foreigners visiting Japan after the Meiji Restoration
(1868) were very much surprised to find leprosy sufferers wandering at large and claimed that something should be done about it and the Japanese Government was worried about the large number of people with the condition among those who were examined for the draft
at age 20.
influenced the number of those who left and were readmitted into society.
was considered to have received unfair treatments in two trials because he was a leprosy patient.
Sanatorium
A sanatorium is a medical facility for long-term illness, most typically associated with treatment of tuberculosis before antibiotics...
for leprosy
Leprosy
Leprosy or Hansen's disease is a chronic disease caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium leprae and Mycobacterium lepromatosis. Named after physician Gerhard Armauer Hansen, leprosy is primarily a granulomatous disease of the peripheral nerves and mucosa of the upper respiratory tract; skin lesions...
patients or ex-leprosy patients at Kohshi-shi, Kikuchi-gun, Kumamoto-ken, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
founded in 1909. The mean age of residents (ex-patients) is about eighty.
Background
The Japanese Government promulgated the first leprosy prevention law on March 19, 1907 but it did not come into effect until April 1, 1909 because of financial constraints. Under this law, patients who did not have family to support them were forcibly treated in public leprosaria. Japan was divided into five areas, the fifth of which included NagasakiNagasaki
is the capital and the largest city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. Nagasaki was founded by the Portuguese in the second half of the 16th century on the site of a small fishing village, formerly part of Nishisonogi District...
-ken, Fukuoka
Fukuoka
Fukuoka most often refers to the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture.It can also refer to:-Locations:* Fukuoka, Gifu, a town in Gifu Prefecture, Japan* Fukuoka, Toyama, a town in Toyama Prefecture, Japan...
Prefecture, Ooita Prefecture, Saga
Saga
Sagas, are stories in Old Norse about ancient Scandinavian and Germanic history, etc.Saga may also refer to:Business*Saga DAB radio, a British radio station*Saga Airlines, a Turkish airline*Saga Falabella, a department store chain in Peru...
Prefecture, Kumamoto Prefecture, Miyazaki
Miyazaki Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu. The capital is the city of Miyazaki.- History :Historically, after the Meiji Restoration, Hyūga Province was renamed Miyazaki Prefecture....
Prefecture and Kagoshima Prefecture. In this area, Kumamoto was selected as the site of the sanatorium
Sanatorium
A sanatorium is a medical facility for long-term illness, most typically associated with treatment of tuberculosis before antibiotics...
.
The two main reasons for the leprosy prevention law were that foreigners visiting Japan after the Meiji Restoration
Meiji Restoration
The , also known as the Meiji Ishin, Revolution, Reform or Renewal, was a chain of events that restored imperial rule to Japan in 1868...
(1868) were very much surprised to find leprosy sufferers wandering at large and claimed that something should be done about it and the Japanese Government was worried about the large number of people with the condition among those who were examined for the draft
Conscription
Conscription is the compulsory enlistment of people in some sort of national service, most often military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and continues in some countries to the present day under various names...
at age 20.
Kyushu Sanatorium
- April 1, 1909: Seven-prefectural Kyushu Leprosy Sanatorium opened. (Director: Masayuki Kawamura )
- 1910: Name changed to Kyushu Sanatorium.
- 1926: Jichi Kai (Patients' Association) started.
- 1934: Matsuki MiyazakiMatsuki Miyazakiwas a Japanese medical doctor, the director of the Kyushu Sanatorium in Kumamoto, Japan. He studied war and leprosy and found that stress was a great factor in the development of leprosy. He later established a leprosy center belonging to Japan Leprosy Mission of Asia, in India...
became director of the sanatorium. - 1940: 157 patients of Honmyoji settlements forcibly hospitalized.
- Feb 3, 1941: 58 patients from Kaishun Hospital accepted.
National Sanatorium Kikuchi Keifuen
- July 1, 1941: Name changed to National Sanatorium Kikuchi Keifuen.
- May 13, 1945: Air raidAir raidAir raid refers to an attack by aircraft. See strategic bombing or the smaller-scale airstrike.Air raid may also refer to:*Air Raid , by the improvisational collective Air...
in which two patients were killed. - May 1951: The first issue of the "Kikuchi-no" journal of Jichi Kai.
- Jun 1951: Main Building opened.
- Nov 1951: First patient discharged, cleared with the drug Promin.
- 1958: Matsuki Miyazaki, a segregationalist, left the Kikuchi Keifuen Sanatorium.
- Apr 1982: Kyushu Medical Center opened (center for 3 Kyushu sanatoriums).
- Apr 1996: The 1953 Leprosy Prevention Law was abolished and residents (ex-patients) have been encouraged to leave the sanatorium.
- Jul 1998: The trial for compensation started.
- May 11, 2001: The trial for compensation ruled that the previous Leprosy Prevention laws were unconstitutional.
- May 25, 2001: The result of the trial for compensation was confirmed. Compensation of 8,000,000 yen to 14,000,000 yen was given to patients depending on the duration of the unconstitutional periods for which they had been detained.
- Apr 1998: Dermatology clinic opened for health insurance system.
- Dec 2006: Keifuen Museum opened. (Open Mon-Fri. 11 a.m.-4 p.m.)
Number of patients
The number of patients in the sanatorium varied. It depended on the numbers admitted, the number of deaths among residents and the number of patients who escaped or were discharged, Recently they were encouraged to be discharged, but for a long period, the segregation policy which caused leprosy stigmaLeprosy stigma
Leprosy stigma is a kind of social stigma, a strong feeling that a leprosy patient is shameful and is not accepted normally in society. Also called leprosy related stigma, leprostigma and stigma of leprosy.-Stigma:...
influenced the number of those who left and were readmitted into society.
| Year | Number of In-patients |
|---|---|
| 1909 | 115 |
| 1920 | 226 |
| 1930 | 654 |
| 1940 | 1093 |
| 1950 | 1111 |
| 1958* | 1734* |
| 1960 | 1635 |
| 1970 | 1463 |
| 1980 | 1250 |
| 1990 | 988 |
| 2000 | 683 |
| 2003 | 592 |
| 2004 | 557 |
| 2005 | 552 |
| 2006 | 483 |
| 2007 | 456 |
| 2008 | 426 |
Directors
- Masayuki KawamuraMasayuki Kawamurawas a Japanese physician who worked at Kikuchi Keifuen Sanatorium between 1909 and 1933. He was the only physician-director of the sanatorium at its start, while there were officials of the police stations heading other public sanatoriums at their start....
(Apr 1909-Jul 1933) - Sadaaki Tamiya (Nov 1933-Jan 1934)
- Matsuki MiyazakiMatsuki Miyazakiwas a Japanese medical doctor, the director of the Kyushu Sanatorium in Kumamoto, Japan. He studied war and leprosy and found that stress was a great factor in the development of leprosy. He later established a leprosy center belonging to Japan Leprosy Mission of Asia, in India...
(Jun 1934-Sep 1958) - Isamu TajiriIsamu Tajiriwas a Japanese physician specializing in leprosy. He worked at Nagashima Aiseien Sanatorium, Kikuchi Keifuen Sanatorium and Tama Zenshoen Sanatorium. In 1955, he proposed "acute infiltration" of leprosy.-Life:...
(Sep 1958-Jun 1963) - Kazuchika Shiga (Jul 1963-Sep 1976)
- Shigeru Kumamaru (Dec 1976-Mar 1991)
- Jiro Mizuoka (Apr 1991-Mar 1994)
- Masao Yufu (Apr 1994-Apr 2004)
- Masataka Harada (May, 2004-)
Other personalities
- Yoshitsugu Satake: Recipient of the Sakurane Award in 1967 for the development of anti-leprosy medications.
- Mamoru UchidaMamoru Uchidawas an ophthalmologist who worked for leprosy patients at Kyushu Sanatorium Nagashima Aiseien Sanatorium, and Matsuoka Hoyoen Sanatorium. He taught leprosy patients tanka, in these sanatoriums. Later, he studied social welfare as professor at Kumamoto Junior College...
: Teacher of tankaTankaTanka may refer to:* Tanka, a form of Japanese waka * Tanka prose, a literary genre which combines tanka poems and prose* Thangka, a pictorial representation in Tibetan Buddhism...
(short poems).
Forced hospitalization of leprosy patients at Honmyoji Temple
On July 9, 1940, 157 patients living around Honmyoji temple were forcibly hospitalized and sent to other sanatoriums. This incident was also called the Honmyoji incident. This was considered to be one of the "no leprosy patients in our prefecture" movements.Fujimoto's case
Matsuo FujimotoMatsuo Fujimoto
was a Japanese executed man, who was charged for a 1952 murder and was executed by hanging in 1962. His guilty verdict, death sentence and execution, made controversies, because he suffered from leprosy and the Japanese government were urging the discrimination and prejudice against the leper...
was considered to have received unfair treatments in two trials because he was a leprosy patient.