Okinawa Airakuen Sanatorium

Okinawa Airakuen Sanatorium, (National Sanatorium Okinawa Airakuen) is a sanatorium for leprosy patients or ex-leprosy patients at Sumuide, Nago, Okinawa, Japan starting in 1938.

History

History before the sanatorium

• Main article: Keisai Aoki

major changes

• Nov 10, 1938: Okinawa Prefectural Kunigami Airakuen Sanatorium opened.
• Apr 1, 1941: National Kunigami Airakuen Sanatorium.
• Apr 25, 1946: Under American Military Government.
• Apr 1, 1952: Ryukyu Government Kungami Airakuen.
• Aug 26, 1961: Hansen's disease prevention law of Okinawa promulgated.
• May 15, 1972: Okinawa returned to Japan. "National Sanatorium Okinawa Airakuen"
• Apr 1, 1996: The previous leprosy prevention law was abandoned.

Sanatorium and the war

• In Sept 1944, they digged many air-raid shelters, which were named Hayata Goh(air-raid shelter) later.
• 400 new leprosy patients were hospitalized by the Japanese army in September 1944, to a total of 913 patients. Food and housing conditions were miserable.
• April 1, 1945, American army landed at Chatan.
• April 10, 1945, Director Hiroshi Hayata allowed patients to leave the sanatorium.
• April 21, the Sanatorium was occupied after hand-to-hand fighting.
• May 4, the Sanatorium was formally occupied.

After the war

• August 1945, the director of the army hospital visited the Sanatorium.
• March 8, 1946, the "Yagaji Sanatorium", meaning the sanatorium on the Yagaji Island, became the restricted area.
• In 1949, Dr.V.Scorebrand visited the Sanatorium, and tried to use promin.^{[clarification needed]}
• In July, 1953, Dr.Doull visited Okinawa for two months and reported various recommendations concerning leprosy.
• In March 1951, Okinawa "Save-Leprosy Patient" Association started.
• In Febr 1954, the Jichi-kai(Patients' association) of the Airakuen started "Tomonokai", an association for those who were discharged from the Airakuen and Miyako Nanseien.
• In Feb 1960, an outpatient clinic started in Naha City. Similar clinics were built later in Ishigaki -jima and Miyako -jima.
• In March 1957, the Japanese Government started to send leprosy specialists to two Okinawan sanatoriums.
• In 1967, Okinawan schoolchildren surveys were started.
• 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.

Number of In-Patients

Year	Number of In-patients
1945	657
1950	881
1955	909
1960	936
1965	755
1970	670
1975	655
1980	697
1985	641
1990	583
1995	539
1999	472

^[1]

Year	Number of In-patients
2003	355
2004	341
2005	326
2006	309
2007	291
2008	276

^[2]

References

• The transitions of the leprosy policy(1999) Kazuo Saikawa, Okinawa Leprosy Prevention Association. in Japanese.
• Leprosy in Japan

Notes

1. ^ Fukken eno Jitsugetsu (2001)Koyo Shuppansha Tokyo　p.374
2. ^ 2009,1,5

External links

• Airakuen Sanatorium HP, in Japanese

Coordinates: 26°40′34.2″N 128°01′08.3″E / 26.676167°N 128.018972°E / 26.676167; 128.018972