Hanoi (VNA) – Nozomi Soejima is living out a dream she hashad since she was a little girl. The Japanese occupational therapist has helpedrehabilitate Vietnamese patients at the Rehabilitation Centre of Bach MaiHospital in Hanoi for almost two years, as a Japan International CooperationAgency (JICA) volunteer.

She works at the centre nine-to-five, overcoming difficulties in a newcity and new community and becoming integrated into the local society as wellas her workplace.

Aiming to help patients perform their own daily activities and improvetheir quality of life, Soejima has focused on providing them with therapies toimprove their Activities of Daily Living (ADL) performance, while guiding theirfamilies to assist them and give them chances to serve themselves as exercisesfor a speedier recovery.

Nguyen Thanh Nam, one of Soejima’s co-workers, said the Japanese expert haschanged his mindsets and other therapists’ at the centre, giving them a clearerunderstanding of the specific targets and standards of rehabilitation therapies,thus keeping them on the right track during treatment.


Along with treating patients, Soejima also helps train therapists at thecentre, as Vietnam has little experience in the profession.

Together with sharing her experience with her Vietnamese peers, Soejima,with nine years of experience in rehabilitation before working in Vietnam, helpsthe centre build standards and test charts, contributing to the enhancement ofcapacity of the centre.

More than a year ago, the centre could handle just about 20 patients aday, and the number has increased to 60-70 at present.

Many of her patients, ageing from 10 to over 90, consider Soejima morethan a therapist, but a friend.

Nguyen Huu Tuan, an active 10-year-old boy, had his right hand nerve cutby a piece of glass in an accident while he was driving his bicycle and could notmove his index figure. Tuan has received treatment for nearly three months atthe centre, where he has found a Japanese friend.

“She is unique,” said Tuan while proudly showing off a paper elephantSoejima taught him to make.

“Soejima is as gentle as my mother. If she goes back to Japan, I willsurely miss her a lot,” said Tuan.

Soejima is one of the 66 JICA volunteers in Vietnam currently, who workfor a two-year term.

According to JICA, the volunteers are engaged in many areas in Vietnamsuch as health care, social welfare, Japanese language teaching, local development, tourism, agriculture, fishery, industrial development and sports, contributing to social and human development.

As of March 2018, more than 600 Japanese volunteers had been sent toVietnam to work in cities and provinces nationwide, using their skills,knowledge and experience to promote socio-economic development in Vietnam, andenhancing the friendship between the two countries.

Working in preschool education, Akari Tsuchiya, a skilled teacher with morethan seven years experience in Japanese preschools, is a volunteer at Huong SenPreschool run by the Centre for Women and Development under the Vietnam Women’sUnion in Hanoi since October 2017.

The cheerful teacher came to Vietnam, making use of her own experience and adding to her skills by practicing activities together with her coworkers. During this time, she came to have an enriched understanding of the similarities in the education systems of Vietnam and her home country of Japan.

“At first, the children kept space from me and did not understand myVietnamese. But now I am very happy that we have become very close to eachother,” said Tsuchiya.

Tsuchiya teaches two classes with about 40 children aging from one tosix at Huong Sen preschool.

During her music and movement activities as well as art classes withchildren, Tsuchiya has introduced Japanese games and arts to them, includingJapan’s traditional Origami paper folding art.

“It is wonderful to have Tsuchiya here. We have learnt a lot from her,an enthusiastic teacher with great working attitude and love for children,”said Mai Lan Huong, manager of Huong Sen.

“The most impressive thing I find in Tsuchiya is her creativity. Shealways makes teaching tools herself from cost-saving and recycled materials,which I find very inspiring,” she added.

Huong said that while working together, Tsuchiya and Vietnamese teachershave regularly exchanged ideas to seek the most suitable methods and programmesfor the children, ensuring their comprehensive growth.


Soejima and Tsuchiya are among many Japanese people who are silentlycontributing to reinforcing the sound relationship between Japan and Vietnamover the past 45 years, especially the friendship between Japanese andVietnamese people.

According to the Vietnam-Japan Friendship Association, more than 260,000Vietnamese are working, studying and living in Japan and nearly 20,000 Japaneseare working in Vietnam.

Vietnam and Japan are enjoying the best development period in their45-year-ties, especially since the two sides upgraded their relationship to thelevel of Extensive Strategic Partnership for Peace and Prosperity in Asia in2014.

“If I have more opportunities, I will come back Vietnam, using myknowledge and skills to make more contributions to community development here,”stated Nozomi Soejima.-VNA