Japanese doctor brings light to visually-impaired

Realising that many poor patients could not afford treatment in major
hospitals in Hanoi, the 55-year-old started travelling to
these areas to conduct , bringing light to over 15,000
patients.

Doctor Hattori, born in Osaka, graduated from Kyoto Prefectural University of
Medicine, one of the eight most prestigious universities in Japan.

After that, he was invited to work in many renowned hospitals in
his country.

He decided to be a doctor at the age of 15 after witnessing
the cold, irresponsible behaviour of medical staff in the hospital that
caused his father’s death.

Hattori studied hard at university and even at work. Now he
is a highly-skilled ophthalmologist who can perform 20 to 30 cataract
surgeries or 6 to 8 vitrectomies per day – a highly technical procedure.

The Japanese doctor is also among the few specialists capable of
shortening surgery time to one third through the use
of endoscopy.

Hattori could have easily found a well-paid job in Japan, but he decided
to leave everything behind to concentrate on charity work. He considers the
main purpose of medicine is helping others, not making money.

His life changed when he met a Vietnamese doctor at a scientific
conference in 2001, who suggested he should go to Vietnam.

“He told me there were many poor patients in Vietnam who could
not afford medical treatment. Some were in danger of going blind, even in
middle age,” he recalled.

Half a year later, in April 2002, he decided to resign from the hospital
he was working at to embark on his charity journey to Vietnam, a country
completely new to him.

On his first visit to Vietnam, he spent
a month recording everything related to the situation of eye
patients who were too poor to pay for medical treatment around the country.

After returning to Japan, he called for sponsorship from medical
companies but was turned down because he no longer worked for
a hospital.

He then submitted a proposal for assistance to the Japanese
government but was told they only supported non-governmental organisations.

In the end, he decided to use all the savings that he and his wife
had set aside for their retirement to buy equipment to
perform free surgeries in Vietnam.

“After I told her, my wife was so angry and did not talk to me for
three days,” he recalled.

But Hattori’s kindness and big heart won her over. From being
angry, his wife gradually understood and supported him wholeheartedly.

Since the fateful meeting in 2001, his life has been divided into
two. He spends half the year in Japan working as a freelance
ophthalmologist to earn money, and then he comes back to Vietnam.

His call for financial aid was finally answered by his friends
and the community back home, and he managed to raise funds to donate
to the public hospitals and private clinics where he works part time.

“Treating Japanese patients is much easier because they
immediately consult their doctors as soon as they have health problems, so the
disease is usually in the early stages,” Hattori said.

“Vietnamese patients only resort to doctors when they are
nearly blind. That’s why the number of blind patients in Vietnam is
unexpectedly much higher than in other places I have been to,” he added.

Hattori is now working as an executive director for the Asia – Pacific
Prevention of Blindness Association that he established in 2005 to
support cataract patients.

All medical examination, treatment costs, as well as lenses
and surgical instruments are paid for from his own savings and
the organisation.

Hattori’s dedication to charity work has been highly appreciated
by both the Vietnamese and Japanese governments.

He was awarded with the Medal for People’s Health by the Vietnamese government
in 2006, the title The Person Bringing Japan to the World by the Japanese
cabinet in 2012, and a certificate of merit from the Japanese foreign minister
in 2013.

In 2014, he received a friendship medal for his dedication to the prevention of
blindness in Vietnam.

But according to Doctor Hoang Van Chinh from Quang Yen Hospital in Quang Ninh province
where Hattori treated for nearly 1,000 patients, his most significant
contribution is his transfer of experience and knowledge to local doctors.

In every disadvantaged local hospital that he has been to, he has also called
for financial support to purchase new specialised equipment to supplement
the facilities.

“Thanks to that, even when Hattori could not travel, local
hospitals were still able to treat poor patients using high-tech equipment
and modern techniques,” he said./.