Nationality Japanese Religion Roman Catholicism | Name Yae Ibuka | |
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Occupation Teacher of English and later nurse Known for She was misdiagnosed as having leprosy and was treated at Koyama Fukusei Hospital a leper hospital. Impressed by the director of the hospital, she devoted herself to patients. She was awarded the Florence Nightingale Medal in 1961. Died May 15, 1989, Koyama Fukusei Hospital, Gotenba, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan | ||
Yae Ibuka (井深八重, Ibuka Yae) (23 October 1897 – 15 May 1989) was a Japanese nurse who worked with patients suffering from leprosy. She was diagnosed as having leprosy, and hospitalized at Koyama Fukusei Hospital in 1919. It proved a misdiagnosis three years later, but she was deeply impressed by Drouart de Lézey, the director of the hospital, and was determined to work as a nurse with leprosy patients. In 1961, she was awarded the Florence Nightingale Medal.
Contents
The pronunciation of Koyama Fukusei Hospital
Life
On October 23, 1897 she was born in Taipei, Formosa (now Taiwan) as a daughter of a congressman, Hikosaburo Ibuka. She graduated from Doshisha Women's College(now University), and she was teaching English at Nagasaki, when she developed a skin change, which was diagnosed as a sign of leprosy. She was hospitalized at Koyama Fukusei Hospital without knowing the diagnosis. The diagnosis was shocking to her. Since her disease did not progress, she sought the diagnosis of Prof. Keizo Dohi of Tokyo University in 1922. Leprosy was denied. Observing the director of the hospital, she was determined to work for leprosy patients and became a nurse. In 1923, she became the only one qualified nurse at the hospital. She had remained the chief nurse at the hospital until April 6, 1978, when she became the honorary chief nurse. Her dedication to leprosy patients was highly appreciated. She became the first president of Japan Catholic Nurses' Association. She died on May 15, 1989, one day before the 100th year anniversary of the Koyama Fukusei Hospital. On May 16, she was given a special award by Princess Takamatsu (Kikuko) of Japan.