Category: Care

by Michael Gillan Peckitt August 26, 2025 1
Abuse Care Disability Japan

Former Executive Director Accused of Abusing Users at a Disability Employment Support Facility in Aki City

It has come to light through interviews with the organization operating a disability employment support facility in Aki City that the former executive director was certified by a regional union as having committed abuse, such as kicking a chair used by a facility user. The organization in question is Kochi Kizuna Farm, a general incorporated association that operates employment support facilities for people with disabilities in Aki City and Ino Town. According to the organization, the regional union conducted interviews with staff and others after receiving information that abuse was taking place at the facility in Aki City. The investigation confirmed that the former executive director, a man in his 50s, had kicked a user’s chair and that a life support worker at the facility had also kicked a user.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt August 25, 2025 Number of comments0
Animals Care Disability Elderly Japan Podcast

73-Year-Old Woman Dies Almost Three Weeks After Bear Attack Outside Akita Care Home for Disabled [Podcast Episode]

Hideko Miura, 73 was found bleeding and collapsed near the entrance to Tsutsuji, a group home for the intellectually disabled in Uesugi, Kitaakita City, around 11:00 PM on the 31st of July. Based on injuries to her head and face, it was suggested that she had been attacked by a bear. Miura was reportedly unconscious when transported to the hospital, but never regained consciousness and passed away on the morning of August 20th.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt August 21, 2025 Number of comments0
Abuse Care Children Disability Japan

Abuse was “part of a game” at Hiroshima Support Facility for Children with Disabilities Facing Administrative Action

An after-school day service facility for children with disabilities in Hiroshima City has been penalized after staff, including the operator’s representative, were found to routinely use wrestling moves, shouting, and hitting as a supposed form of “communication” with children—behavior described by a former employee as a daily occurrence and treated as “part of a game.” Hiroshima City has suspended the operator Watanohana for three months.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt August 21, 2025 2
Care Disability Elderly Japan

73-Year-Old Woman Dies After Bear Attack on Grounds of Akita Prefecture Facility for the Disabled

A 73-year-old woman, a resident of a facility for the disabled in Kitaakita City, who was attacked by a bear late last month, passed away on the 20th. According to police, the cause of death was injuries to her head and face sustained during the attack and the deceased’s name was Hideko Miura (73). According to Akita Prefecture, this is the first time this year that someone has died in a bear attack in the prefecture.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt August 20, 2025 Number of comments0
Abuse Care Children Disability Japan Podcast

Hiroshima Support Facility for Children with Disabilities Faces ‘Administrative Action’ After Abuse Discovered [Podcast Episode]

In Hiroshima City, at a support facility that takes care of children with disabilities, abuse such as hitting a child on the buttocks was found to have occurred. In addition, improper receipt of benefit payments was confirmed. As a result, the city has taken administrative action, including revoking the operator’s authorization.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt August 19, 2025 2
Abuse Care Children Disability Japan

After Cases of Abuse are Discovered, Hiroshima Support Facility for Children with Disabilities Faces Administrative Action

In Hiroshima City, at a support facility that takes care of children with disabilities, abuse such as hitting a child on the buttocks was found to have occurred. In addition, improper receipt of benefit payments was confirmed. As a result, the city has taken administrative action, including revoking the operator’s authorization.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt August 8, 2025 Number of comments0
Care Disability Elderly Japan Nursing Care Podcast

Japan to Launch Public Support System for Elderly Living Alone; Hospitalization, Nursing Homes, Funeral Arrangements Covered [Podcast Episode]

The Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry is considering creating a new framework to support elderly people who live alone and have no relatives they can depend on. The framework would cover hospital admission, entry into nursing homes and post-mortem procedures such as funerals. The ministry aims to launch the program in fiscal 2027 with an eye toward revising the Social Welfare Law next year.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt August 6, 2025 Number of comments0
Animals Care Disability Japan Podcast Welfare

Bear attacks woman outside home for people with disabilities in Akita [Podcast Episode]

A woman was sent to hospital unconscious after an apparent bear attack outside a facility for people with disabilities, police said on Friday. More and more wild bears have been spotted in residential areas in Japan in recent years, resulting in a rising number of attacks and deaths. “A 73-year-old woman was found lying down with head injuries at the facility entrance on Thursday night,” a local police spokesman in Akita Prefecture said. Emergency doctors told police they believed it was a bear attack based on the injuries the woman suffered, the spokesman said.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt August 5, 2025 1
Care Disability Elderly Japan Welfare

Japan to Launch Public Support System for Elderly Living Alone; Hospitalization, Nursing Homes, Funeral Arrangements Covered

The Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry is considering creating a new framework to support elderly people who live alone and have no relatives they can depend on. The framework would cover hospital admission, entry into nursing homes and post-mortem procedures such as funerals. The ministry aims to launch the program in fiscal 2027 with an eye toward revising the Social Welfare Law next year.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt July 25, 2025 Number of comments0
Abuse Care Disability Japan Podcast

14 Staff Members Abused Residents at Gifu Disability Support Facility [Podcast Episode]

Fourteen staff members at the Gifu Prefectural Hana-no-Kien disability support facility in Toki City have been found to have committed 40 instances of abuse against 18 residents, including forcefully hitting their heads and kicking them during medication administration. The abuse, which occurred between July and October 2024, came to light after one employee was arrested for assaulting a male resident. In response, the Gifu Prefectural Government has suspended the facility’s intake of new residents for three months starting in September 2025 and is considering further disciplinary action against 12 of the involved staff.