For interested foreigners｜医療法人渓仁会　手稲渓仁会病院　（北海道札幌市手稲区）

Welcome to Teine Keijinkai Hospital (TKH). TKH is a 550 bed acute care hospital located about 15 minutes northwest of Sapporo in the suburb of Teine. The hospital was founded in 1987 and is part of the Keijinkai Corporation of healthcare facilities. Outpatient and inpatient care are provided in nearly all disciplines and notably, TKH has Hokkaido’s only medical helicopter service supporting its status as a main regional referral center.

In 2001, through consultation with the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Department of Internal Medicine, TKH introduced a residency training program. Presently there are 20 new residents per year. The program includes the continuous presence of an American faculty member as well as several U.S. trained Japanese faculty working together to provide American-style clinical education. The program takes pride in recruiting medical students driven to be outstanding clinicians, some of whom will surely become future leaders in clinical medicine in this country. Every year on average a couple of the program graduates go on to pursue American residency training at the University of Pittsburgh and elsewhere.

As part of the endeavor to provide American-style clinical education, great emphasis is placed on the use of English at TKH. Residents are recruited in part based on their English ability and enthusiasm for the language. Approximately one-third of morning didactic / case discussion sessions are held in English as are all afternoon teaching rounds and other interactions with the American faculty (other activities, understandably, are generally conducted in Japanese). Because of this fluency with English, TKH is able to frequently host foreigner medical professors for didactic sessions and also to host interested foreign medical students and residents.

If you are interested in visiting TKH please note the following:

・	Visiting medical students / residents will be observing rather than participating in any procedures, because Japanese medical malpractice insurance does not cover foreign medical students.
・	The duration of these observerships is 2-4 weeks
・	GIM, general surgery, pediatrics, and OBGYN are ready to accept one medical student at a time.
・	Japanese language skill is not imperative but about a year of college level coursework or equivalent is highly advised since such ability will afford a much more fruitful experience on the floors and particularly outside the hospital.
・	It is greatly appreciated if applications, including the recommendation letter, are received at least three months before the desired rotation.
・	Finally, regarding local expenses, lunch is provided free of charge by the hospital Monday through Friday. Most visitors stay at a hotel about five minutes by foot from the hospital. It is the only hotel in this suburb and presently costs 6,090 yen per day including tax and breakfast. This is very reasonable by Japanese standards.

We look forward to your inquiry. Please download the attached application and mail it to the enclosed address. Any further questions are welcomed at　kenshu@keijinkai.or.jp.

Observership Application Download
(PDF：96KB)