Preparedness, Including Preparation of a Physician-Staffed Helicopter, for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Shizuoka Prefecture

Abstract

In 2020, the summer Olympic and Paralympic Game will be held in Tokyo and nearby prefectures. Venue medical officers (VMOs) are responsible for providing various medical services for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Cycling events have been held at every Summer Olympic Games. Track events and mountain bike racing will be held at the Cycle Sports Center in Izu City, the road race will finish at the Fuji International Speedway in Gotemba City, and the athlete village will be located at Hotel Laforet Shuzenji in Izu City in eastern Shizuoka Prefecture. Juntendo Shizuoka Hospital serves as the base hospital for a physician staffed helicopter (called a doctor helicopter [DH] in Japan) and is responsible for eastern Shizuoka. It is also the leader of the medical control council system, which oversees the activities of the fire department. At present, the DH in eastern Shizuoka routinely transports severely injured or ill patients from the Cycle Sports Center in Izu City and the Fuji International Speedway in Gotemba City. The VMO of Juntendo Shizuoka Hospital is now responsible for providing medical services at track and mountain races held in Izu City. After the determination that the Olympic cycling events would be held in Izu City, the VMO of Juntendo Shizuoka Hospital held several meetings with these organizations and attended special training for mass casualty events to establish an appropriate medical control system for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games. To provide appropriate medical services during these events, the VMO of Juntendo Shizuoka Hospital has started cooperating with related organizations.