An NPO that aims to transport children and others in need of advanced treatment to specialized medical institutions nationwide using small jets has started a crowdfunding campaign to raise 1 million yen, which is the fund to start trial operation from next fiscal year.
In Japan, patients are mainly transported by helicopter using airplanes, but there are cases where children with serious heart disease die because they cannot be transported because the distance that can be flown is relatively short and a large heart-lung machine cannot be installed due to weight restrictions.
With the aim of introducing a small jet that can fly a long distance and carry many medical devices to save more patients, a non-profit organization in Osaka has started a crowdfunding campaign to raise 1 million yen to conduct a trial operation from next fiscal year.
This NPO plans to start transporting patients on a nationwide scale by jet aircraft with a specialized medical team based at Osaka Airport for one year from April next year, and will work to the government to bear the subsequent costs based on the results of the operation.
In Hokkaido, the national and provincial governments were the first in Japan to transport patients using jet aircraft, and some patients were able to save their lives by transporting them to medical institutions outside Hokkaido, so Norihide Fukushima, president of the Japan Jet Carrier Transport Network for Critically Ill Patients, which raises funds, said, "I have been involved in the treatment of heart disease and transplant surgery for many years, but I have seen many people who died without being able to transport them. I would like you to support us so that we can save as many patients as possible in areas where there are no advanced medical institutions."