Making medical services
"good enough"

There was an incident that made a big impact on founding MITAS Medical. It was about 10 years ago, when I was working at a clinic in Hokkaido. A grandma visited the clinic one day in the winter. Her neighbor brought her in because she had been withholding from visiting clinics even though she was experiencing pain in her eyes for the past 3 days. By the time she visited, she had already lost her sights due to an acute glaucoma attack^*.

I have asked her later why she had not visited the clinic and was withholding at home. She told me that she has visited the local clinic on the first day she experienced pain at a village in a mountain where she lived. Doctor at the clinic diagnosed to the best of their ability without proper equipment and sent her home telling her to visit ophthalmology clinic if the pain persists. She withheld the pain since then.

This incident made us realize that there are people ophthalmologists cannot reach resulting in losing eyesights and made us think if there are ways to create system to connect ophthalmologists and general doctors.

After few years passed, we have came up with the solution.

Trials in Mongolia diagnosed patient with acute glaucoma attack in rural areas far from the ophthalmology clinic by this system, then received an appropriate treatment to avoid losing eyesights. Cost and time spent on reaching ophthalmic service found to be noticeably less as well.

There are still a lot of areas in the world without ophthalmologists. Even within cities, areas where ophthalmologists are difficult to reach.

Our system contributes not only to reduction of cost associated with receiving ophthalmology services, early detection/treatment/prevention of eye diseases.

By creating a world where people can consult with ophthalmologists easily from anywhere, we are hoping to decrease the number of people losing eyesights and those suffering from eye diseases.

(^*acute glaucoma attack: One of the eye diseases which if left untreated, can result in losing eyesights)