Tama Zenshoen Sanatorium
Encyclopedia
Tama Zenshoen Sanatorium, or National Sanatorium Tama Zenshoen, is a sanatorium for leprosy or ex-leprosy patients situated in Higashimurayama-shi, Tokyo
-to, Japan starting in 1909.
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
-to, Japan starting in 1909.
Background
- The Japanese Government promulgated the first leprosy prevention law on March 19, 1907, but it became effective on April 1, 1909 because of financial difficulties. Japan was divided into 5 areas, and the first area included TokyoTokyo, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
-fu, Kanagawa Prefecture, Niigata PrefectureNiigata Prefectureis a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Honshū on the coast of the Sea of Japan. The capital is the city of Niigata. The name "Niigata" literally means "new lagoon".- History :...
, Saitama Prefecture, Gunma Prefecture, Chiba Prefecture, Ibaragi Prefecture, Tochigi Prefecture, Aichi Prefecture, Shizuoka Prefecture, Yamanashi PrefectureYamanashi Prefectureis a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of the island of Honshū. The capital is the city of Kōfu.-Pre-history to the 14th century:People have been living in the Yamanashi area for about 30,000 years...
and Nagano PrefectureNagano Prefectureis a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of the island of Honshū. The capital is the city of Nagano.- History :Nagano was formerly known as the province of Shinano...
. In this area, Tokyo was selected as the site of the sanatorium. - Two main reasons for the leprosy prevention law were, 1)foreigners who came into Japan after the Meiji RestorationMeiji RestorationThe , 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 wandering leprosy patients in Japan, and claimed that something should be done 2) the Japanese Government was worried about the considerable number of leprosy patients among those who were examined for the drafts at age 20.
Tama Zensho Hospital and Sanatorium
- On September 28, 1909, Prefectural Tama Zensho Byoin(Hospital) was established.
- On July 1, 1941, National Sanatorium Tama Zenshoen.
- Jun 1919:Kensuke MitsudaKensuke Mitsudawas a Japanese leprologist and director of the Tama Zenshoen Sanatorium and the National Sanatorum Nagashima Aiseien. He had been at the frontier of leprosy policy of Japan. He was given the Order of Cultural Merits and Damien-Dutton Award...
reported what became known as "Mitsuda reaction" later. - Sep 1919: Special money circulating only in the sanatorium (Enken) started.
- Mar 1931: 81 patients went to National Sanatorium Nagashima Aiseien following Kensuke MitsudaKensuke Mitsudawas a Japanese leprologist and director of the Tama Zenshoen Sanatorium and the National Sanatorum Nagashima Aiseien. He had been at the frontier of leprosy policy of Japan. He was given the Order of Cultural Merits and Damien-Dutton Award...
in order to make it an ideal sanatorium. - Feb 1936: Tamio Hojo's "The first night of life" was published in Bungakukai, which became a milestone of leprosy literature by the recommendation of Yasunari KawabataYasunari Kawabatawas a Japanese short story writer and novelist whose spare, lyrical, subtly-shaded prose works won him the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1968, the first Japanese author to receive the award...
who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1968. - Apr 1996:The 1953 Leprosy Prevention Law was abolished.
- Jul 1998: The trial for compensation started.
- May 11, 2001: The trial for compensation ruled that the previous Leprosy Prevention was unconstitutional.
- May 25, 2001: The trial for compensation was confirmed. The compensation of 8,000,000 yen to 14,000,000 yen was given to patients depending on the duration of unconstitutional periods.
Directors
- Apr 1909: Acting director: Tokutaro Ohno
- Sep 1909: Chief doctor:Kensuke MitsudaKensuke Mitsudawas a Japanese leprologist and director of the Tama Zenshoen Sanatorium and the National Sanatorum Nagashima Aiseien. He had been at the frontier of leprosy policy of Japan. He was given the Order of Cultural Merits and Damien-Dutton Award...
- Mar 1910: First director : Saijiro Ikeuchi
- Feb 1914: Second director: Kensuke MitsudaKensuke Mitsudawas a Japanese leprologist and director of the Tama Zenshoen Sanatorium and the National Sanatorum Nagashima Aiseien. He had been at the frontier of leprosy policy of Japan. He was given the Order of Cultural Merits and Damien-Dutton Award...
- May 1931: Third director: Yoshinobu Hayashi
- Jul 1963: Fourth director: Ryoichi Yajima
- Apr 1976: Fifth director: Masao Arai
- Apr 1977: Sixth director: Kishio Ohnishi
Number of Patients at fiscal year end
The number of in-patients is the sum of patients which changed not only by the newly diagnosed hospitalized and those who died among in-patients, by other factors such as the number of patients who escaped or were discharged, depending on the condition of the times. Recently they were encouraged to be discharged, but the long period of the segregation policy causing leprosy stigma might influence the number of those who went into the society.-
Number of In-patients Year Males Females Total 1909 165 63 228 1920 338 133 471 1930 762 291 1053 1940 805 403 1208 1950 733 411 1144 1960 771 407 1178 1970 660 375 1035 1978 640 360 1000
| Year | Number of in-patients |
|---|---|
| 2003 | 447 |
| 2004 | 417 |
| 2005 | 371 |
| 2006 | 358 |
| 2007 | 334 |
| 2008 | 319 |
Leprosy Research Center
- National Institute of Infectious Diseases:Leprosy Research Center is also situated in the neighboring place.