Wednesday October 15, 2025 until October 26, 2025

I never thought I would ever have to use our Out of Country Health Insurance while bike touring. When we went on our world trip we purchased Nomads Insurance for two years. Nomads was the only Insurance company that would insure you for a year and then you could renew it every six months. We never had to use it, not a scrape.

After we got re-settled in Canada, Ralf signed up for the Public Service Health Care Insurance, he was eligible because of his Military Service. It has covered us for dental, massages etc. I never thought we would have to use it for something serious, like surgery.

As you read in yesterday’s post I had a bad accident on my bike and was taken to one of the hospitals in Matsuyama.

Thank goodness we had the coverage. The Insurance Company responded very quickly to Ralf and the hospital, confirming treatment and payment direct to the hospital. They have been excellent throughout this ordeal.

I had surgery on a broken ankle and a broken clavicle, both required pins/plates in the bones. The care I received has been amazing.

Although I must admit on the day of surgery, (Thursday October 16, 2025) when I was being prepped for surgery I felt more like a carcass than a living, breathing human being. At about 10:00 I was taken to the shower room, I was transferred to a metal table without much ceremony and stripped naked. I was showered down, hair washed, soaped and scrubbed (the road rash and wounds had been cleaned on admission to ER), patted down and redressed in a gown ready for surgery. I am convinced my sister-in-law’s Golden Retrievers get better treatment at their doggy day spa.

Later one of the nice orderlies cut my fingernails and toenails, not sure why, but it is on the list of instructions if you have surgery in Japan. We laughed about the manicure and what colour nail polish to put on.

At 1:00 a drip was put in and I was wheeled away to the operating theatre. I was scared and I wished Ralf could have been with me in the morning. They told him he could visit at 5:00 p.m. which was outside of regular visiting time.

When I woke up I didn’t have a boot or cast just a large piece of gauze and tape covering the ankle wound and shoulder. I also had my wonderful husband waiting in the room, with a relieved look on his face. That night I was woken every couple of hours to check my blood pressure, temperature and oxygen levels. No machine beeping away, a nurse coming in every couple of hours to check up on me and ask if I had any pain. A kind person, who cares about you and how you are feeling. I was told to press the call button at any time, if I needed anything. They put it close to my pillow so that I could reach it, if I needed to call a nurse. When I pressed it, the nurse was there within a few minutes. The third Japanese word I learnt was Itae – pain!

Selfie after surgery

There are certain things you cannot do when you have surgery on your right clavicle as it is very painful to move that side of your body. One of them is cleaning your teeth, brushing your hair, and using chopsticks. Please try brushing your hair with your non-dominant hand. It feels so weird, doesn’t it?

When they bought some food to me, they asked if I could use chopsticks. Yes, I said confidently, then indicated not with this hand (my left). They smiled and bought me a spoon.

Nurses The nurses have been amazing, so kind and caring.

I asked one of the nurses how long it took to become a nurse. She told me three months! That seemed rather short. Then she explained that before working at a hospital she went to vocational school to train to be a nurse. Similar, to Canada where you can get a nursing degree at a community college and then get a BSc at a University. The three months is the training in the hospital. They have a lot of responsibility, but there is a lot of nurses working on this ward. I think there are about 10 private rooms, and 10 rooms with 4 beds in each room. Approximately 50 patients and about 8 – 10 nurses working at any given time, plus orderlies who bring the food and ice-packs. When I was admitted there were a lot of empty beds. At the second emergency rotation almost all of the beds were taken.

Room with a view

The hospitals in Matsuyama rotate the day of the Emergency intake. The hospitals are on rotation every 8 days. I am not sure what the other hospitals are like, but I cannot complain about the care I have received here.

Physiotherapy

The hospital started physiotherapy on my ankle and shoulder the day after surgery.  Gently moving both ankle and shoulder and massaging the muscles.  At the end of my first session the physio asked if would like to go outside. I thought it a bit strange but said yes. He wheeled me outside and it felt so good to see trees and the little garden. I cried, it was so kind of him.

Over the next week, the physio became more intensive. After a few days I was able to wheel myself to the washroom and eventually after a week allowed to have a shower on my own.

The surgeon indicated that it might take a while to get full mobility back in my shoulder. After one week my shoulder is almost back to normal. Normal is 180 degrees, mine is 170 degrees!! When the physio did the measurements after about the third day, she exclaimed with an OOOhh. I asked if that was a good Ooh or a bad ooh. No, she said very good ooh. Very good.

After a couple of days of physio, the insurance company did not want to pay for the additional physio only if it was part of the acute care. The hospital indicated to them it was part of the acute care and I was able to carry on. Although I would have carried on with the exercises, I don’t think I would have this much mobility in my shoulder and ankle if it wasn’t for the intensive physiotherapy that this hospital has given me.

They had me using crutches, but they hurt my shoulder when I used them for too long. I could walk about 10 feet before it bothered my shoulder. We purchased a pair to be able to adjust them properly and take them back to Canada with us, so that I can get around the house. They were only $40.00, and they are my souvenir from Japan.

As I mentioned before the care has been amazing. The nurses and I have a little chat, using google translate when they come in to take my blood pressure in the morning and the evening. Google translate has been working well most of the time. They teach me one new Japanese word every day.

Itae – pain; Gen ki des – How are you; Watashwa gen ki – I am fine; Oishi – delicious; Oishi ku ny – not delicious; onaka su e ta – hungry; Gam bad y ma su – I will do my best

Lost in Translation

We used google translate a lot.  However, there were times when the nurses or doctors used google translate, the pronouns got confused. Often when they were telling me that I am going to do something, for instance the day of the surgery, the nurse translated “you are going to surgery at 1:00”, it translated as “I am going to surgery at one o’clock” I wondered why she was going to surgery when I was the one with a broken ankle and clavicle. I just said yes.

The funniest translation was “the anaesthetist will anaesthetize himself”. I wasn’t sure that was a good idea, because I really wanted to be asleep during these procedures.

A few days later when I asked about having a shower. Translate indicated that “I was going to have a shower tomorrow.” Seems right but it was on the nurses phone so it would appear that she was going to have the shower, not me.

Also when I was taken to have x-rays and they had to leave me to make sure the room was ready, they would say wait here. It made me smile, I wasn’t about to hop off the bed and leave.

Middle names confuse the Japanese

I have been called Jacqueline or Rosemary or Mrs. Winter. On Saturday at physio the physiotherapist asked me to write down my full name. Jacqueline Rosemary Winter. Jacqueline first name, Rosemary middle name, Winter family name. “So, we call you Rosemary it is a very beautiful name”. No, my first name is the one I use. I explained that in Canada and Europe most people have a middle name usually to remember another relative. Rosemary was my grandmother’s name – not quite true but easier to explain than the Mary part of it was grandmother and the Rose came from nobody in particular. Combine the two and it is a very beautiful name.

As the physio session was coming to an end, she got on her phone and chatted to somebody about my names and the reasons behind a middle name. Now I only get called Jacqueline.

Food

I cannot say that the food has been inspiring, is any hospital food? At first I was getting a bowl of sticky rice with every meal, including breakfast. I could not eat it and felt bad for wasting the food. They asked if it would be better if the rice was in balls, I said sure. Nope, 6 balls of sticky rice 3 x a day was still too much for me. Eventually we stopped with the rice all together. I was served miso soup twice a day, breakfast and lunch. The night nurses prepared a copy of the menu for me in English and decorated it with the Canadian Flag and and the Japanese Flag. Simple, but very kind gestures.

I don’t think I gained any weight in hospital, but I am not starving so the balance of protein and vegetables and miso soup seemed to be working. I am looking forward to some food with a bit of spice to it when I get home.

Ralf was allowed to bring me some fruit and cereal which I added to the breakfast of miso soup and vegetables.

Sunday October 26, 2025. was Health and Fun day at the hospital. The hospital grounds had vendors, food and entertainment for the kids. There were several performances on the “main stage”. One of the nurses came and asked what I would like to see and showed me the schedule of performers. We went down to watch African Drum and Dance performed by a Japanese troupe. I also watched people playing a flute like instrument called an ocarina they sounded a little like Pan flutes. Very peaceful and relaxing. We had a little wander around the exhibits and then into the rehabilitation room (physio) not to have any physio just to see some of the equipment. There was a machine that measured your strength. I had a go and both hands measured the same, I could push 20 kgs.

My nurses treated me to some mochi cake and showed me how to eat it – heated, with soy sauce and sugar. I will miss these kind, caring people.

I was discharged on October 27. I was asked what time I wanted to leave! The hotel check-in was 3:00, I asked if 2:30 would be o.k. At 2:00 my favourite nurse, Tomoko, came in with information from my surgeon to be given to the Doctor’s in Canada and a supply of painkillers. Mr. Oichi came to say goodbye and take us downstairs. He had ordered us a taxi and waited with us until it arrived.

The nurses were there to say goodbye to me. I had prepared a little speech for them and Mr. Oichi translated it for me.

Thank-you for looking after me so well.