Institutional development · Research, innovation and assessment · Japan
Kyoto University study finds twofold gap in civil servants' outpatient costs across ministries
A Kyoto and Keio university research group reports that sex- and age-adjusted monthly outpatient costs per civil servant varied from JPY 2,374 to JPY 5,125 across 10 Japanese ministries.
Why it matters: Staff at the headquarters of 10 Japanese ministries are the subject of findings that the researchers say suggest a need for work-style reform for national civil servants.
Kyoto University said a research group including Graduate School of Medicine professors Kosuke Inoue and Naoki Kondo and Keio University lecturer Koryu Sato examined outpatient medical costs among civil servants at the headquarters of 10 ministries in Kasumigaseki, Tokyo's government district.
According to the university, after adjusting 2016-2023 costs for differences in sex and age, monthly costs per person ranged from JPY 2,374 at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to JPY 5,125 at the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.
The researchers reported a tendency for ministries with 1% longer Diet (parliament) standing committee deliberation time per staff member to have 0.25% higher outpatient costs.
The paper appeared in the Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health, and the university said the results suggest a need for work-style reform among national civil servants.
Editor’s view
Scott James, Research and Innovation Editor
The university said the findings point towards understanding actual working conditions in each ministry and considering health-management support for staff in ministries with heavy workloads.
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