President’s Message
I am pleased to announce that I have been appointed as the 12th President of the Healthcare Engineering Association of Japan（HEAJ）at the extraordinary board meeting held on 19 June 2025, succeeding Dr. Hiroshi Yasuhara as the previous president. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all the senior associates who have supported the activities of this association. I am thrilled to be here, and I am determined to carry forward the traditions established by past presidents and members, striving to make this association a hub for the development of information related to the engineering of medical and welfare facilities. I aim to ensure that the association remains a necessary entity in society, as well as a platform for members' activities and communication.
The Healthcare Engineering Association of Japan was established in 1953 with the aim of researching, improving, and promoting hospital engineering. It is an organization with over 70 years of history. In 1959, the first original journal was published, ‘Hospital Engineering’ which has now reached its 375th issue. In 1972, the first HEAJ annual meeting was held, and since then, the association has continued to hold annual academic meetings, featuring lectures and symposia on the latest topics, as well as presentations of members' research findings. Additionally, since 1974, the HEAJ has organized the HOSPEX Japan exhibition in conjunction with the conference. Unfortunately, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the exhibition was closed, but it has been continued in a smaller scale at a venue closer to the conference site as the Medical and Welfare Equipment Exhibition, fostering collaboration with the industry in the field of medical and welfare equipment and contributing to its development.
In 1999, the association changed its name from the Hospital Engineering Association of Japan to its current name to reflect the expanding scope of the medical field. Recently, the HEAJ has continued to disseminate important messages related to facility design and engineering in the fields of healthcare, nursing care, welfare, and public health, such as the establishment of the Hospital Facilities Design Guidelines （HEAS） and the Certified Hospital Engineers （CHE） certification system.
The association is also actively engaged in international exchange. In 1984, the HEAJ became affiliated with the International Federation of Healthcare Engineering（IFHE） as Japan's representative and sends representatives to the biennial international conference and the annual board and council meetings. In 2010, our society hosted the first IFHE international conference in Asia.
The HEAJ was consisted with wide range of professionals in the medical and welfare fields, including medical practitioners, consultants, architects, contractors, facility managers, medical equipment manufacturers, and researchers and faculty members from universities and research institutions. This diversity supports the association's unique activities.
In recent years, the environment surrounding healthcare, nursing care, welfare, and public health has become increasingly challenging. However, we believe that the role of our association, which engages in cross-disciplinary activities through the design and equipment of related facilities, will become even more important in these fields. We kindly request your continued support and cooperation so that our association can continue to respond to societal needs and serve as an important information hub.
NAKAYAMA Shigeki
President,HEAJ
July 2025
