Hiroshima University Hospital introduced "Hinotori," the first surgical robot system produced in Japan, to their facility. It performed a prostate cancer removal surgery on March 23.

HU Hospital is the fifth facility in Japan to perform surgery using the "Hinotori" system.

"Hinotori" has eight movable axes that act as joints and four arms to which medical instruments such as endoscopic cameras and forceps can be attached. In this surgery, Professor Nobuyuki Hinata of the Department of Urology sat in the cockpit and operated a controller while viewing detailed three-dimensional images to remove the affected part. The surgery went smoothly and was completed in 2 hours and 10 minutes. The surgery was performed with minimal blood loss and with little burden on the patient.

HU Hospital is equipped with two US-made "Da Vinci" surgical robots, which perform robotic surgery for prostate, kidney, and bladder cancers. The hospital is gradually expanding the range of surgeries it can perform to include gastric and esophageal cancers and has decided to introduce "Hinotori" as its third unit.

Medicaroid Ltd. (Kobe City), a joint venture between Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd., and Sysmex Corporation, began the development of Hinotori in 2015, and its production and sales were approved for the first time in Japan in 2020. Professor Hinata was involved in the development of the robot at his previous position at Kobe University.

On October 7, 2021, Hiroshima University Hospital and Japan Tobacco Inc. (JT) entered into an agreement on the provision of medical assistance to JT Thunders Hiroshima, which plays in the men’s division of the V-League, Japan’s volleyball league. The purpose of the agreement is for Hiroshima University Hospital to provide JT Thunders Hiroshima players and staff with medical check-ups, routine health care guidance, and other forms of medical assistance, thereby contributing to improving the athletic performance of the players.

Details of the medical assistance to be provided will be examined moving forward, including mental and nutritional assistance, cardiopulmonary function checks by applying exercise stress, and other new initiatives.

The endowed chair system allows Hiroshima University Hospital to accept donations of funds for its personnel, research and other related expenses and to use them as financial resources for hiring professors and pursuing medical care, research, and education.

Under this system, professors who are also doctors, work at a community hospital and Hiroshima University Hospital, facilitating closer relationships between the parties so as to give back to community health care.

In April 2022, we established three new endowed chairs through donations from Higashihiroshima City, Minamisoma City in Fukushima Prefecture, and Yawatahama City in Ehime Prefecture.

This is the second endowed chair that Higashihiroshima City has funded at our university hospital, subsequent to the first one in October 2021. Following the completed relocation of Hiroshima University to Higashihiroshima City in 1995, both parties have grown together, currently pushing forward with the implementation of the Town & Gown Initiative, an initiative where town (the local government of the City) and gown (students and the faculty of the University) work together in creating a community.

The collaborative and cooperative relationship established between Hiroshima University and Minamisoma City immediately after the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011 has since intensified. The University has also provided medical assistance and cooperation to Yawatahama City in the past. The establishment of the endowed chairs this time is designed to further develop the existing ties with these cities.

Starting in FY2020, Hiroshima University Hospital has set up and operated endowed chairs, which is now total ten, owing to the cooperation of all concerned. We will continue to contribute to community health care through the activities of our endowed chairs.

Provided by Minamisoma City

On November 22, 2021, a group of six people from Fukushima Prefectural Government and Fukushima Medical University visited Hiroshima University Hospital, conveying their gratitude for sending doctors to Fukushima Prefecture and expressing their hopes for its continued support. The group included Dr. Masafumi Abe, Fukushima Prefectural Hospital Administration Manager ; Mr. Kazuhisa Adachi, Director General, Prefectural Hospital Bureau, Fukushima Prefectural Government; Dr. Koichi Tanigawa, Director, Fukushima Prefectural Futaba Medical Center; and Prof. Yasuchika Takeishi, Executive Director and Vice President, Fukushima Medical University.

During the meeting, Dr. Abe said, “We are grateful to Hiroshima University Hospital for sending doctors to our prefecture on a continual basis at a time when it is difficult to secure doctors. Thanks to you, we have been able to maintain a 24/7/365 emergency medical care system and earnestly hope for your continued support.” Dr. Tanigawa reported on the current situation in which Futaba Medical Center-affiliated Hospital has accepted 90% or more of patients transported by ambulance and therefore deals almost single-handedly with emergency medical care in the community. It was also explained that Fukushima has an increasing number of older residents as more evacuees return to their homes in the prefecture, and consequently, home-visit medical care/nursing and visiting lectures on diabetes are now playing an even larger role in community health. Dr. Yoshiaki Kiuchi, Director of Hiroshima University Hospital responded by saying, “Given the ongoing harsh situation in Fukushima, we would like to continue our support to you.”