Remote Japan Island near Taiwan Struggles to Secure Doctor Amid Fear of Taiwan Contingency

By Manami Shimada / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

1:00 JST, August 24, 2025

YONAGUNI, Okinawa — Yonaguni Island, Japan’s westernmost remote island in Okinawa Prefecture, might not have a single doctor from next spring as the island’s only clinic will be unable to secure one, partly due to a possible contingency in Taiwan.

A Tokyo based medical association, which has dispatched doctors to the town of Yonaguni, has indicated that it would stop sending them, raising concerns among those living on the island, which is located only about 110 kilometers from Taiwan.

On Aug. 5, resident Kumiko Oshiro, 69, saw a doctor at Yonaguni Town Clinic, the island’s only clinic. She said she felt fatigued and underwent a blood test and received an intravenous drip.

“Sometimes I suddenly get sick,” she said. “It’ll be a problem for me if there aren’t any doctors on the island.”

The Japan Association for Development of Community Medicine has been operating the clinic under contract with the town and dispatching doctors.

However, in January of this year, it notified the town that it would not send doctors from March next year.

The association cited such reason as the difficulties of securing a doctor who can stay long-term as well as difficulties in continuing to operate the clinic amid concerns about an emergency in Taiwan.

Currently, the only full-time doctor is Kazuhiko Kasuya, 63, whose contract will expire in March next year. But the association said it could not secure his successor.

The University of Ryukyus’ Faculty of Medicine requires some of its medical students to work on remote islands or in other remote areas for a certain period of time after graduation. But young doctors tend to meet the requirement by choosing areas with prefectural hospitals, such as the northern part of Okinawa Island, Miyako Island and Ishigaki Island.

“There are not many opportunities [for doctors] to hone their expertise at clinics on remote islands, and a small staff means more responsibility,” said Kasuya. “Young people are unlikely to choose to work on the most remote island, where there are concerns about a possible emergency.”

An official of the association said, “Fewer people have been willing to work on Yonaguni since the possibility of an emergency started being discussed.”

The town has a population of about 1,600. The clinic sees an average of 28 patients per day as of fiscal 2022. When transporting patients to Ishigaki City for a medical emergency, the clinic must request a helicopter from the Japan Coast Guard, which is responsible for patrolling around the Senkaku Islands amid the increasingly tense situation.

The town government has asked the association to continue operating the clinic as well as the Okinawa prefectural government for cooperation in securing doctors.

The island’s only pharmacy closed at the end of May, leaving the island without a pharmacist. A town official expressed concern that the growing possibility of an emergency are beginning to affect the town’s future.

“If we cannot maintain a stable medical system, the island will continue to decline.”