Why is this work relevant for Direct?

For professionals of Western medicine, by using the familiar food of pizza as the base and adding to it the Eastern medicine diagnostic method of the four examinations and foods, we provided pizzas that express the concept of integrative medicine. We quantified the diagnostic patterns of Eastern medicine that in the past have been difficult to put into numerical terms to make it easier for professionals of Western medicine to understand, and then converted these numerical terms to pizzas that were provided to participants.

Background

In June 2018, the WHO revised the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) for the first time in approximately 30 years, and for the first time added diagnostic patterns of Eastern medicine. Nihon Pharmaceutical University is the only university in Japan where students can major in Eastern medicine. As a result of worldwide attention focused on Eastern medicine, Nihon Pharmaceutical University has increased professional development offerings for people engaged in realizing integrative medicine, which integrates Eastern medicine into modern healthcare, which is built around Western medicine.

Describe the creative idea (30% of vote)

Nihon Pharmaceutical University seeks to integrate Eastern and Western medicine, and has increased its professional development for integrative medicine as Eastern medicine receives increased attention worldwide. The concept for this is “Pharmonic,” a word created from pharmaceutics and harmonic, having the meaning of new wave motion. Seminars for healthcare professionals designed to realize integrative medicine are based on the Pharmonic concept and include classwork and activation that allows participants to experience integrative medicine with the five senses. Using the familiar Western dish of pizza as the base, the Eastern medicine diagnostic method of the four examinations and foods are added to it to create herbal-medicinal pizzas for healthcare professionals that are selected from more than 1,300 types available to match individuals’ physical constitution and condition. Participants learn about the importance of integrating Western and Eastern medicine, and about the expanded possibilities that doing so creates.

Describe the strategy (20% of vote)

We created a chart of the patterns that can be understood by anyone, and which used to be diagnosed by physicians of Eastern medicine based on their individual perception, and then collected the pattern states of participants. Individuals’ pattern states change depending on their state of health and living environment, and we have made it possible to diagnose the state of more than 1,300 patterns using this chart. Converting Eastern medicine input into Western-style output has made it easier for participants to understand the concepts and content.

Describe the execution (20% of vote)

The program has been held at the two locations of Tohto Bunkyo Hospital and Nihon Pharmaceutical University. People working in hospitals, pharmacists, and others were invited to the events. The program consists of a seminar on the theme of integrative medicine presented by a professor of Nihon Pharmaceutical University and a hands-on event using Pharmonic Pizza. Healthcare professionals who are interested in Eastern medicine and Japanese traditional medicine (Kampo) came to understand the integrative medicine pursued by Nihon Pharmaceutical University. We will continue to hold this program on an ongoing basis.

List the results (30% of vote)

After the event, participants’ understanding of Eastern medicine more than doubled as expressed on a 10-point scale (Before the event: average of 3.2 points; After the event: average of 7.1 points). In addition, 85% of participants replied that “I want to recommend this event to the healthcare professionals I work with.” Some 72.7% replied that “I am interested in the Kampo Aroma Course,” and 63.6% replied that “I want to take the Kampo Aroma Course.” Some healthcare professionals also replied that they want to further advance the practice of preventive rehabilitation by combining the Eastern medicine concept of pre-symptomatic medicine with Western medicine. Holding the events has helped encourage the understanding for and accelerate the realization of integrative medicine.