Health and Global Policy Institute (HGPI) has released “Lessons and Future Implications of Disaster Mental Health Support in Japan: Reflecting on disaster responses in communities from 1995 through 2020” in five languages: Japanese, English, Traditional Chinese, Thai, and Ukrainian.

The report reconstructs findings from “Examples of and Recommendations for the Creation of Municipal Mental Health and Medical Welfare Systems for Medium- to Long-term Post-Disaster Response,” which was presented as part of the FY2021 Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare Project for the Promotion of Comprehensive Welfare for Persons with Disabilities. This project has reconstructed those findings with a focus on conditions and changes in disaster response in Japan with the goal of sharing real-world examples prepared for municipal governments among a greater number of citizens. In addition to providing an English translation, to help disseminate Japan’s disaster response methods on a global level, the project also produced translations in Chinese, Thai, and Ukrainian to better reach areas that have experienced disasters similar in scale or in nature to those that have occurred in Japan.

The experiences Japan has accumulated in mounting responses to all forms of disaster are highly valuable. We strongly hope this report provides one form of assistance in helping the world come together to overcome the overwhelming phenomena that are disasters by sharing Japan’s experiences with global society.