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Coronavirus infections in Tokyo outstrip hospital capacity to treat patients

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Stay home

5 ( +16 / -11 )

In Paraguay in a trial of over 320000 people, the latest SINGLE SHOT Russian vaccine was over 93% effective!!! A vaccine with the potential to squash the pandemic in Japan in weeks. The fact Japan is still pushing on with Pfizer and Moderna is looking more and more like a black comedy.

-50 ( +8 / -58 )

What’s being described in this article is the collapse of the healthcare system in Tokyo.

36 ( +40 / -4 )

"The status of infections is a lot worse now" compared with when the 17-day Tokyo Olympics were held from July 23, Shigeru Omi, chairman of a government subcommittee on the coronavirus response, told a parliamentary hearing ahead of the start of Paralympics on Tuesday.

He added his panel has not been consulted by the government about the way the Paralympics should be held.

This above is in essence how Japan has responded to the pandemic since last year - dont care, dont want to listen to medical experts advise but will continue to either ignore the writing on the wall or just ram through the olympics games at any costs - to appease IOC and to ensure their corporate cronies pockets are lined up (Dentsu, Pasona....)

I am sure still if any of the LDP elected official gets covid he/she will find absolutely no problem is getting a covid bed immediately at their disposal

The rules for elites were different here all along but this pandemic has shown a whole new light to this basic right of residents such as govt to protect residents lives as foremost priority but alas - they are denied basic hospital care in time of need (other article on JT talking about mother giving birth to baby premature and baby dying)..

Sad state of affairs all along

22 ( +25 / -3 )

A reporter or 2 need to ask the Tokyo governor and Paralympic organiser’s some questions.

How many beds are reserved for the Paralympic’s?

How many medical staff are working for the Paralympic’s?

Why are these resources not being used to provide medical care for local residents?

31 ( +33 / -2 )

Many experts inside and outside government had predicted domestic infection epidemic 5th wave.

But Japan's PM Suga who were crazy for Olympics had neglected preparation.

23 ( +23 / -0 )

A reporter or 2 need to ask the Tokyo governor and Paralympic organiser’s some questions.

How many beds are reserved for the Paralympic’s?

How many medical staff are working for the Paralympic’s?

Why are these resources not being used to provide medical care for local residents?

It's sad for the competitors but we are all making sacrifices. No one is paying big money for the Paralympic television rights. Few people watch it. No spectators at all. Should have cancelled it.

19 ( +24 / -5 )

The problem is only about 20% of hospitals are allowing Covid patients in. The others should be forced to to so! Again though in a country where people get a saline drip for a common cold I wonder how many actually require hospitalisation?

-1 ( +14 / -15 )

Dear Good

I don’t want to stay home.

How’s that?

-14 ( +7 / -21 )

Happy to announce I had my second jab yesterday with no side effects. Now to apply for the vaccine passport and be gone with the masks.

-37 ( +7 / -44 )

Koike sitting and doing nothing…oh wait, she’s actually doing lots for the IOC and trying to fill the ParaOlympics venues with children! Shame on her!!!

27 ( +29 / -2 )

Well, this is to be expected when you let the virus run to 5,000 new cases every day. Perhaps, just perhaps, they have focused more on the virus than the Olympics. Perhaps!

11 ( +13 / -2 )

How can we practice recuperation at home where people are living in rabbit houses. Infections will happen to all the family members soon.

17 ( +18 / -1 )

Of 1,668 people who were recuperating at home or designated lodging facilities and sought ambulance transport due to worsening of their condition, 959 could not be accepted at any medical institution, it said.

Some of them passed away in their home since they can not get medical attention properly.

https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2021/08/10/national/covid-19-home-deaths/

13 ( +14 / -1 )

Yesterday I google-ed more around the "oxygen station" and managed to find nothing.

I think I should buy an oxygen generator just in case i catch Sars-Cov-2.

9 ( +10 / -1 )

And number of deaths by magic does very very hardly raise by a few units.

Hundreds can't breath an hour and they all survive.

It's magic land !

If they have severe symptoms, they are likely to die.

I personally suffered that way, and I could feel death not far. Fortunately, I kept under control that time but I was going to call ambulance in a blue state if it was 10 seconds more. And I have large lungs and under 50.

Imagine all those with slight initial breathing limitations...

I call magic some figures.

Time will tell. Historic truth will prevail sooner or later.

12 ( +15 / -3 )

Nearly 1,000 COVID-19 patients who requested an emergency ambulance service in Tokyo during the first week of August were turned away by hospitals

Do we still consider Japan a developed country?

29 ( +32 / -3 )

What a great task for the SDF... set up Temporary treatment facilities and get real world practice for the real thing! That would be too much like common sense though for Suga... Just leave it a bit longer so we are further behind the eight ball! Useless

13 ( +14 / -1 )

The situation is getting worse day by day.

And yet today on another JT thread, once again a poster claimed 'just another flu' and that was published. Keeping the mis/disinfomation spreading while people die from Corona.

6 ( +13 / -7 )

Lovecrafting

Exactly. No efforts towards more bed capacity. No efforts to recruitment and training of staff.

And no effort to treatment drugs so people can home medicate after consultation with a doctor!

15 ( +15 / -0 )

These games just keep on killing!!! And para hasnt even started!

8 ( +10 / -2 )

@TokyoJoe

Relax.

I guess people downvoted you because you said, "and be gone with the masks".

8 ( +13 / -5 )

Other countries just created temporary hospitals to combat this issue. Not Japan. Why?

26 ( +27 / -1 )

Japan need a complete politic revolution but people love resiliation 仕方がない and useless dinosaurs so they deserve what they chose.

9 ( +10 / -1 )

It’s hard to believe that the Japanese government has let it come to this.

The government continues to act like this current situation is a complete surprise and couldn’t have been predicted.

Surely it’s clear for everyone to see that this group of largely old men are the wrong people to be running the country.

Get rid of them all Japan, come on. Enough is enough.

19 ( +20 / -1 )

@Chris. Covid vaccines don't make you 'immune'. Neither does a flu vaccine. They just reduce the severity, period of illness and spread of disease. They last longer than 6 months and work well for most people, not '50%'. And TokyoJoe should keep wearing his mask, even though he is vaccinated.

This is a pandemic. 'Zero deaths' is not an option That doesn't happen for heatstroke, flu or RTAs, and it won't for covid either. Doctors and nurses will save as many as they can, often putting their own health on the line to do so.

Hospitals are designed for day-to-day capacity. If you don't open up some MASH style units in large hangars or conference halls, you may not have the space or enough staff to cover care during a surge.

The RotW has had people who did not need hospital treatment quarantine at home with their families. By the time they know they are ill, most would have exposed their families to the virus. Quarantining as a family unit makes sense, especially now the vaccine roll out is proceeding.

The use of hotels is unwise. Having a lot of sick people in one place may increase viral exposure and severity of illness. It may even promote variants. Plus some people will avoid tests to avoid being imprisoned in a hotel.

Just support the hotels financially, alongside other businesses, through this.

As the vaccine numbers increase, the severe cases will start to reduce.

Once Delta arrived, Japan was going to get a new wave. With or without the Olympics.

Delta appears to be virulent enough to dominate. The silver lining to that cloud is that border blocks will no longer be needed. In a worst case scenario, you won't be taking anything to somewhere that doesn't already have plenty of it. Tests will be unnecessary. Vaccinations will be required to reduce strain on health services. Those who cannot vaccinate will require insurance cover. That excludes nations with 'covid zero' policies. They will permanently require quarantine for incomers, probably regular lockdowns and a great deal of luck to stay virus free. It will eventually feel like a prison for many, and will lock them out of international interaction.

Humanity has had worse pandemics with far more deaths and far less medical care. Calm down, behave responsibly and get vaccinated. The persistent focus on covid in the news is taking attention away from climate change and inducing pandemic fatigue in audiences, reducing compliance in govt. requests.

2 ( +9 / -7 )

Hideomi KuzeToday  07:10 am JST

Many experts inside and outside government had predicted domestic infection epidemic 5th wave.

But Japan's PM Suga who were crazy for Olympics had neglected preparation.

Are you happy now, PM Sukkup and Bach?

GWToday  07:55 am JST

These games just keep on killing!!! And para hasnt even started!

JimToday  07:20 am JST

Koike sitting and doing nothing…oh wait, she’s actually doing lots for the IOC and trying to fill the ParaOlympics venues with children! Shame on her!!!

And the worst part of it is that now (at least in America) children are at the greatest risk. And thousands of children are already sick in America now. Shame shame shame!

0 ( +4 / -4 )

Time for the government to break out the verbal sleight of hand.

Citizens: "Hey, government! Look! Your inaction on the virus and focus on the Olympics has led to this situation!"

Govt. spokesperson: "Japan won lots of medals at the Olympics, and some children sang a John Lennon song!"

Citizens: "God bless the LDP! I will surely vote for you in the coming election!"

13 ( +13 / -0 )

How is this possible?

The "don't worry be Happy" brigade here, keep telling us everything is fine and Covid isn't a big deal!

6 ( +8 / -2 )

The hysteria is far worse than the virus, considering it's like a dose of the flu with 99.7% of people fully recovering. Get on with life, we are not here for a long time.

-16 ( +5 / -21 )

@O'Brien

Time for the government to break out the verbal sleight of hand.

Citizens: "Hey, government! Look! Your inaction on the virus and focus on the Olympics has led to this situation!"

Govt. spokesperson: "Japan won lots of medals at the Olympics, and some children sang a John Lennon song!"

Citizens: "God bless the LDP! I will surely vote for you in the coming election!"

Spot on mate.

Just like you say. Any criticism leads to a similar situation. Or someone from the government will come along and say "we created a mascot to promote XYZ to prevent similar situations".

Citizens: "oh, that's so sweet, kawaii. Our government cares, they don't have mascots like this elsewhere abroad". Pat on their shoulders and "お疲れ様でした, you worked so hard for us".

And then someone comes on TV with a sticker board and graphs to show how foreign countries are worse off. E.g. Rwanda, Zimbabwe, Bangladesh. Add to that a few statistics on how many foreigners have been infected here, a quickie-facebook expert who predicts "this virus will soon have knives and control firearms and people won't be safe", the media will put on a few dramatic background soungs and people will be terrified of how bad things are abroad and how good things are actually here..

And then the thesis starts to spread that the current vaccinations are not paid for by health insurance, but are free. And a lot of people believe it.

8 ( +9 / -1 )

Nearly 1,000 COVID-19 patients who requested an emergency ambulance service in Tokyo during the first week of August were turned away by hospitals

Some hospitals, though having received the state subsidy for cooperation, still keep refusing covid patients. That's serious breach and fraud. Outrageous.

The government (finally!) is launching an inquiry on the problem. IDs could be published, the subsidy could be withdrawn if they continue to be defiant.

コロナ病床実態調査へ 政府、補助金受け消極的な病院も

https://www.nikkei.com/article/DGXZQOUA192LC0Z10C21A8000000/

12 ( +12 / -0 )

The hysteria is far worse than the virus, considering it's like a dose of the flu with 99.7% of people fully recovering. Get on with life, we are not here for a long time.

When will these lies stop? Probably not until the deluded get sick themselves, but they again maybe even not then. Delusion is more powerful for some than the pandemic.

9 ( +12 / -3 )

The hysteria is far worse than the virus, considering it's like a dose of the flu with 99.7% of people fully recovering. Get on with life, we are not here for a long time.

False, long lasting or even permanent health problems are not as rare as you want to believe, and recovering is something heavily dependent on getting the best available treatment. Once you are on your own because hospitalization is not possible death rates increase very importantly, even for young people without other health problems. Just check what is the rate of infection, hospitalization and death for the flu this past season and you will understand how COVID is nothing like it.

A good rule of thumb is that if the health experts in charge of fighting the disease say the situation is dire while nameless people on the internet say things are fine you are much better ignoring the people that know much less about the whole thing.

8 ( +15 / -7 )

It's criminal that hospital are allowed to refuse patients. It is the first country I hear it to be a thing.

It seems to be a clear violation of the Hippocratic Oath that all medical doctors are supposed to uphold.

17 ( +19 / -2 )

And then someone comes on TV with a sticker board and graphs to show how foreign countries are worse off. E.g. Rwanda, Zimbabwe, Bangladesh. 

I haven't subjected myself to the brain-melting garbage that is Japanese TV for several years now, but I can easily visualise this.

I'd like to see them tackle the subject of the woman who had to give birth at home, and the baby subsequently died. They'd need a particularly convincing talento to fake some tears in the "wipe" (the box with the face).

Once they've done that they can go back to "heeeeeeeeeeh"-ing at those wacky foreigners.

14 ( +14 / -0 )

Burning BushToday  06:57 am JST

The hospitals themselves are not full, it's just their designated coronavirus wards that are full.

Normally, a hospital assigns 1 nurse to 6 beds, but in the coronavirus ward, it's like 1 nurse to 1 bed. This is compounded by the fact that the nurses must wear insane amounts of protective gear and it takes huge amounts of time just to wash and change into all this gear.

Many experts are questioning this policy as it's wasteful in terms of time and resources.

Many countries like Denmark and Sweden have changed their policy and are now treating coronavirus patients in the same many as flu or chickenpox patients.

Well if Sweden is doing this then we surely know it is the wrong thing to do

Let's see Sweden's death from covid are what again? Oh right higher than Denmark, Norway and Finland combined and Denmark's is more than Norway and Finland combined.

Not the best examples to follow.

6 ( +10 / -4 )

N.M.Today  09:04 am JST

It's criminal that hospital are allowed to refuse patients. It is the first country I hear it to be a thing.

It seems to be a clear violation of the Hippocratic Oath that all medical doctors are supposed to uphold.

The Hypocratic Oath ain't in effect here. The Hypocritical Oath is strong with this one.

zurcroniumToday  09:01 am JST

The hysteria is far worse than the virus, considering it's like a dose of the flu with 99.7% of people fully recovering. Get on with life, we are not here for a long time.

When will these lies stop? Probably not until the deluded get sick themselves, but they again maybe even not then. Delusion is more powerful for some than the pandemic.

The lies still continue in America even after Joe gave that much needed Presidential Address on TV. The beanheaded Texas Gov. who opposed the vax and restrictions now has CoVid himself. So does a cardinal in the US Catholic Church who was promoting such bilge (and putting God to the test). And even Traitor Don and his daughter-wife got vaxxed after all the double-talk and lies they told the public last year.

1 ( +6 / -5 )

The "don't worry be Happy" brigade here, keep telling us everything is fine and Covid isn't a big deal!

You forgot "...as long as it doesn't affect them personally" at the end.

5 ( +9 / -4 )

Michael MachidaToday  08:07 am JST

Other countries just created temporary hospitals to combat this issue. Not Japan. Why?

Because they spent the money needed to build them on the Olympic games.

7 ( +9 / -2 )

Let's see Sweden's death from covid are what again? Oh right higher than Denmark, Norway and Finland combined and Denmark's is more than Norway and Finland combined.

Yeah I had a look at this yesterday because people keep bringing up Sweden as some kind of great success story.

Sweden infections - 1,115,566

Japan infections - 1,202,012

Sweden deaths - 14,626

Japan deaths - 15,501

Those numbers are so similar it's not funny. Then you take into account that the population of Sweden is less than 1/10th of the population of Japan. Sweden is a tragic disaster!

8 ( +11 / -3 )

Keeping the mis/disinfomation spreading

yep, better off with the panic spreading

-9 ( +3 / -12 )

The "don't worry be Happy" brigade here, keep telling us everything is fine and Covid isn't a big deal!

well what’s the alternative ?

live in fear, never leave the house, whinge, whine & complain on here every day ?

-10 ( +5 / -15 )

Japan, August 18 : 168,863 covid hospitalizations nationwide (+6,987)

People who thinks the medical system for infectious patients is not going to collapse are just fools !

Many deny reality and think like binary : 0 (death) and 1 (live). Well, please note that majority of people hit by the virus will develop long-term effects, the most common being fatigue, lost of smell/taste, headaches, dyspnea for weeks and months. And people leaving ICU are alive yes but need also weeks or months of rehabilitation. So the medical system is not only under pressure with covid patients but also with people recovering from it. And think also that those people cannot work anymore for long time, causing also troubles for the economy.

3 ( +5 / -2 )

Japan’s different ‘take’ on Everything: It is a “special”, “island”, culture”. Perhaps theirs is the “hypocritic” oath?

“a clear violation of the Hippocratic Oath that all medical doctors are supposed to uphold.” -

“It's criminal that hospital are allowed to refuse patients. It is the first country I hear it to be a thing.”

- “ Shame,… shame,.. shame! ” -

6 ( +7 / -1 )

"TheTruthIsOutThereToday  09:46 am JST

Japan, August 18 : 168,863 covid hospitalizations nationwide (+6,987)

People who thinks the medical system for infectious patients is not going to collapse are just fools !

Many deny reality and think like binary : 0 (death) and 1 (live). Well, please note that majority of people hit by the virus will develop long-term effects, the most common being fatigue, lost of smell/taste, headaches, dyspnea for weeks and months. And people leaving ICU are alive yes but need also weeks or months of rehabilitation. So the medical system is not only under pressure with covid patients but also with people recovering from it. And think also that those people cannot work anymore for long time, causing also troubles for the economy."

Complete bunk!

-6 ( +3 / -9 )

Honestly, why the surprise? I'm not sarcastic here. This is about what the Japanese people vote for just like it is in other countries with voting systems.

The denial here as you could see in daily life from the start of knowing that a virus was coming from Wuhan to even now is clear - ignorance especially wilful ignorance has consequences. Unfortunately those of us who never thought that Abe ethno-supremicism - 'We will defeat the virus the Japanese way' - was going to do anything are in the minority.

Then after the 1st SOE the shopping/entertainment areas were flooded with people who thought that a paper mask and supposedly being 'cleaner than other races' - of course Japanese is an ethnicity - had 'beaten the virus. The delusion was everywhere from what I could see and hear first-hand. Remember the dumbos at their university graduations laughing and holding up signs about 'Corona Chan'?

This is a problem across the society here - the ruling party is never really challenged by the public or the opposition, the opposition had done little to spark any constructive debate and just griping about the Olympics was their contribution, many Japanese I know who are educated didn't want to think about what is going on in other countries where the political parties are all involved in the process of dealing with the pandemic, etc.

This is what they wanted - the govt, the pollies and many of the public - and anybody is surprised at the third world situation here? Unfortunately those of us who never agreed are funding this oligarchy and its willing subservients.

6 ( +7 / -1 )

How can we practice recuperation at home where people are living in rabbit houses. Infections will happen to all the family members soon.

Get a HEPA air purifier for your home.

Or one for every room.

The effect in Georgia schools study was quite remarkable

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Many Japanese experts have already made their case. But they continue to stall. I don't know if it's incompetence, corruption, or both... but blood is on their hands for stalling and letting people die.

So step up and put your money where your mouth is. You obviously think that you can get through to the government when these "experts" can't. So why waste time posting here? Go get 'em.

-5 ( +1 / -6 )

Many Japanese experts have already made their case. But they continue to stall. I don't know if it's incompetence, corruption, or both... but blood is on their hands for stalling and letting people die.

When the professionals insist on a discredited conclusion without providing evidence to support their opinion against the scientific consensus definetely incompetence and corruption come to mind, it would not be the first case people neglect their professional duties to support a fringe theory against the available evidence because of lack of capacity or to be benefited against the interest of the public health.

1 ( +4 / -3 )

Once again we see the highly competent LDP logic in action, when basically saying “children don’t spread Delta”… similar to their SOE in which Delta only becomes infectious after 20:00

5 ( +5 / -0 )

PTownsend

And yet today on another JT thread, once again a poster claimed 'just another flu' and that was published. Keeping the mis/disinfomation spreading while people die from Corona.

I just scanned the thread, and yours is the only post that said "just another flue". Complaining about yourself?

In the event, in a society with free speech it is up to the reader to decide what is "misinformation" and not for a ministry of truth.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

Thanks China for ruining the world. Never forget.

2 ( +4 / -2 )

Don,t forget to take into account that Japan tests 10 times less than any other developed ( or even a developing ) country. Japans numbers would be 10 times higher if the govt had balls to test at same levels as the rest of the world....but naah, " safety japan " tatemae is much more important.

Oh I completely agree about Japan, but the point is really about how poorly Sweden has done when some continually try to place it on a pedestal above all other nations. Sweden has been an immense failure. That's not to say I think Japan hasn't.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

Coronavirus infections in Tokyo outstrip hospital capacity to treat patients

Completely misleading headline. "Infections" do not equal hospitalization, and according to the Tokyo government website, there is still available capacity.

2 ( +3 / -1 )

Japan needs to go into complete lockdown as this virus is going to be impossible to contain!

-2 ( +2 / -4 )

Koike and her party must be voted out.

3 ( +4 / -1 )

Welcome Japan to third world status, the pandemic response was once folly is now a full on disaster. Read a mother died giving birth to her child as she was denied access to a hospital and had to deliver at home. But Japan got 27 gold metals so her death is justified, right?

The LDP has exceeded its own basic ability to always screw things up to a new level of corrupt incompetence where thousands are going to die over the next six months plus.

Wow, 25,000 infections in one day. And yet the Paralympics continue to run and the government wants students, who are not vaccinated, to attend. The pandemic response in Japan is now clearly a crime against the residents of the country by the LDP. A Gold Metal disaster as predicted by the scientists who know about pandemics, the sceintists the LDP government is still not listening to at all.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Vaccinations first became available last December. With a population of 126 million, if one million doses a day had been administered since last February, everyone in Japan who is eligible would have had the vaccines months ago. Therefore, this is a failure of leadership, because the vaccines were not administered in a timely fashion.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

vanityofvanities

How can we practice recuperation at home where people are living in rabbit houses. Infections will happen to all the family members soon.

Exactly. Asking people stay in rabbit hutches, away from the sun and fresh air, and forego activity and social contact is the WORST way to deal with any health issue.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

1glenn

Vaccinations first became available last December. With a population of 126 million, if one million doses a day had been administered since last February, everyone in Japan who is eligible would have had the vaccines months ago. 

The vaccinations do not prevent infection and transmission, so I am somewhat baffled as what this continued fixation on vaccinations is about. Can you explain perhaps?

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

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