The Medical System Act,医制について

The Medical System Act

During the mid-seventeenth century to the early eighteenth century, Japan introduced numerous laws and institutions as it transformed into a modern nation-state. Medical administration was included in these reforms. An important milestone was the Medical System Act, issued by the Ministry of Education in 1874 and circulated to Tokyo, Osaka, and Kyoto. Before this time, during the seventeenth century, anyone could claim to be a physician without formal qualifications. Under the new system, however, the title of “physician” became restricted to those who had graduated from a medical school, passed the required examinations, and obtained a national qualification.
The Medical System Act also provided the first official recognition that midwifery was a profession requiring qualifications. Initially, qualification was granted to women over forty years of age who possessed knowledge of the anatomy and physiology of women and children who held a certification from an obstetric physician confirming practical experience assisting ten normal deliveries and two deliveries with complications. With the enactment of the Midwife Regulations in 1899, midwives, like physicians, were thereafter required to graduate from a training school and pass a national examination.