Photo/Illutration A lecture by Satoru Sumitsuji, a veteran cardiovascular specialist at Osaka University’s graduate school of medicine, is streamed live at the Heart Organization’s website on Dec. 18. About 100 doctors subscribed to the live stream. (Provided by Heart Organization Co.)

OSAKA--A website aimed at doctors working in Japan’s rural areas is attracting much interest from medical practitioners overseas who are eager to learn the latest expertise and advancements from Japanese specialists.

The website was launched by Heart Organization Co., a startup here, in spring 2018 to allow doctors to consult with experienced colleagues over how to accurately read medical imaging such as CT and M.R.I. scans.

Toshiko Sugawara,  a former marketing employee with a foreign-affiliated drug company, set up Heart Organization in 2004 to update busy doctors in rural areas on the newest techniques and therapies.

Sugawara said doctors in rural areas are too often tied up with their busy workloads to be able to travel to a major city to attend a medical conference.

The website can also show videos of patients in high resolution. Patient privacy is protected as personal information such as their names and ages are deleted from the images and videos.

To seek a consultation, doctors must join a forum headed by specialists and a study group formed in each medical field on the website.

The monthly fee is about 1,000 yen ($9).

As specialty areas have become so diversified in medicine, many young and mid-career doctors often find themselves at a loss when their superiors are not the best medical practitioner for answers to highly specialized questions.

That is where Heart Organization’s website can bridge the gap.

The cardiovascular field is particularly popular, with the registry of about 11,000 specialists, who, for example, administer catheter-based therapy to expand shrinking blood vessels.

Half the doctors are from China, Taiwan, Egypt and other countries, apparently drawn to Japan’s advanced treatment in the field.

Satoru Sumitsuji, a veteran cardiovascular specialist at Osaka University’s graduate school of medicine, responds to all inquiries from foreign doctors in English, including replying in treating a twisted blood vessel.

He replies to 30 or so inquiries a day at his busiest time.

A Taiwanese doctor appreciates the Heart Organization’s service as it provides the most advanced techniques and knowledge from distinguished medical practitioners at a reasonable cost.

Sugawara plans to expand the number of fields her company’s website covers.

“There are many doctors who are not sure whether they are giving the best treatment possible to their patients,” she said. “If they can seek advice from esteemed doctors on the internet, it will lead to improved quality of overall medical care.”

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