“Doctor Cars” Donated by The Nippon Foundation, 3 Ex-SMAP Members to Fight COVID-19 [2021/04/21]

I had the pleasure of attending a ceremony on April 9 to show to the media two “Doctor Cars” with a full inventory of medical equipment and supplies, which were donated to Nippon Medical School to help it battle the novel coronavirus.

Of the vehicles, the first (left in the photo above) was donated by The Nippon Foundation and the second (right) by “Love Pocket Fund,” established in April 2020 by the foundation and three former members of the iconic boy band SMAP－Messrs. Tsuyoshi Kusanagi, Goro Inagaki and Shingo Katori－who have formed a new group called Atarashii Chizu (Japanese for “new map”).

The first vehicle will be used by Nippon Medical School Hospital and the second by Nippon Medical School Tama Nagayama Hospital.

To treat COVID-19 patients with severe, life-threatening symptoms prior to transport to hospital, the Doctor Cars, also known as “Mobile ICUs” (intensive care unit), are equipped with ECMO (Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation) that pumps blood from the patient’s body, adds oxygen and removes carbon dioxide, then pumps the blood back into the patient.

Also joining the ceremony held at Nippon Medical School in Tokyo were Mr. Tsuyoshi Kusanagi, representing Love Pocket Fund, and the school’s chairman, Dr. Atsuhiro Sakamoto.

Mr. Kusanagi said: “I am very pleased that Love Pocket Fund donated the Doctor Car that is capable of saving as many lives as possible. Nothing is more important than life. I am very grateful to those who donated money to the fund.” He also expressed his deep gratitude to doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals not only in Japan but also around the world for risking their own lives working on the front lines battling COVID-19.

Mr. Kusanagi, now widely seen as one of the most talented actors in Japan, was presented with the 44th Japan Academy Award for Best Actor on March 19 for his outstanding performance in the film Midnight Swan.

In my remarks at the ceremony, I expressed my hearty appreciation to him for joining us despite his tight schedule and said: “I was really pleased that a celebrity like Mr. Kusanagi took the initiative in raising funds for Love Pocket Fund. It has had a huge positive impact on the general public.”

I also expressed my gratitude to the medical personnel for working at the forefront of the fight against the coronavirus, noting that The Nippon Foundation has been conducting free and regular polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests for COVID-19 for about 640,000 caregivers and other essential workers at nursing homes in Tokyo and three nearby prefectures.

As of April 9, donations to Love Pocket Fund totaled 398.3 million yen (about $3.7 million), which have been used mainly to support the COVID-19 response as well as women and children in need of help. One hundred percent of the money donated to the fund is being used for charitable activities with indirect costs borne by The Nippon Foundation.

I sincerely hope that with the help of Love Pocket Fund and its contributors, we will be able to help foster a donation culture in Japan and support people living in challenging circumstances.