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J Telemed Telecare 2000;6 Suppl 2:S79-80 Japanese occupational therapy in community mental health and telehealth.Tsuchisawa K, Ono K, Kanda T, Kelly GSchool of Allied Health Sciences, Kitasato University, Japan. tsuchi@kitasato-u.ac.jp Help for people with mental health problems in Japan has traditionally
centred on inpatient medical care. In a revision of the Mental Health Welfare
Law planned for 2001, responsibility for the support of people with mental
health problems will be transferred from central government to local government.
Furthermore, local government will, in turn, delegate administrative tasks
to a 'community life support centre'. We believe that such a centre could
be linked to a university with a telehealth network. Connection to the
network could benefit people with mental health problems living at home.
We also believe that occupational therapists are ideally positioned to
play a significant role in community life support centres. With the expected
sustained growth in Japanese occupational therapy, it could become a key
profession in the rehabilitation of people with mental health problems.
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