The Case of Japan: How COVID-19 Impacted the Procurement and Lives of Migrant Healthcare Workers. Issue 1 (1st December 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: López, Mario Ivan; Ohno, Shun
• Is Part Of: International journal of social quality. Volume 11:Issue 1/2(2021)
• Page Start: 262
• Page End: 288
• Publication Date: 2021-12-01
• Subjects: aging -- care migrants -- COVID-19 -- EPA -- Japan -- socioemotional commons; Social policy -- Periodicals; 361.6105
• DOI: 10.3167/IJSQ.2021.11010216
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1757-0352

Abstract

Abstract: This article offers an analysis of the impact of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic in Japan with regard to the healthcare sector. With unprecedented pressure from a rapidly aging population, state-sponsored initiatives have created new migration streams from Southeast Asia, diversifying attempts to procure healthcare personnel to address labor shortages. The article analyzes the recent evolution of this supply chain nexus and how it was reconfigured during the pandemic. It also highlights the fragile dependency that Japan now has on an emergent nexus with surrounding countries and the strategies it has taken to ameliorate the vagaries of the ongoing pandemic.