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There are fears Tokyo 2020 organisers could face a shortage of medical professionals able to lend a hand during the Olympic Games as they continue their fight against coronavirus.
Satoru Arai, director of the Tokyo Medical Association, told Reuters it was “impossible” to envisage doctors and nurses volunteering at the rescheduled Games during the global health crisis.
Last March, the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government reportedly asked the association to sign up 3,500 health workers for the Games.
But with hospitals under increasing pressure due to the pandemic, Arai does not believe medical staff will have the time to support the Games on top of treating COVID-19 patients.
“No matter how I look at it, it’s impossible,” Arai told Reuters.
“I’m hearing doctors who initially signed up to volunteer say there’s no way they can take time off to help when their hospitals are completely overwhelmed.”
Last week, Japan’s Olympic Minister Seiko Hashimoto said the country’s Government was planning to secure thousands of medical staff for the Games.
“We are trying to secure necessary medical staff of around 10,000, on the premise of asking doctors and nurses that each of them work about five days during the Games period,” said Hashimoto.
According to Tokyo 2020 President Yoshirō Mori, a decision over whether fans will be permitted to attend the Games will be made in March.
But Toshio Nakagawa, President of the Japan Medical Association, claimed it would be “impossible” to admit to hospital spectators that had contracted the virus at the event.
Tokyo 2020 was postponed to 2021 as a result of the pandemic, with the Olympics scheduled from July 23 to August and the Paralympics set to follow from August 24 to September 5.
