The Tokyo Medical Uni enrolment scandal… and a plot bunny
In which Seorri & I discussed a potential story of a medical drama that hypothetically stars Okada Masaki...
I caught ARJ’s tweet today about the scandal involving Tokyo Medical University’s policy in systematically reducing female candidates’ entrance exam scores by 20% and increasing male candidates’ scores by 20% to accommodate more male medical students in the university. The goal is to have more male doctors in Japan, and they argued that it was done because females would take maternity leave, or perhaps leave the career altogether, to be with their family.
According to Asahi Shinbun, this corrupted system was uncovered during an investigation of a bribery case involving the son of an education ministry bureaucrat who received a favourable treatment to enter Tokyo Med Uni in exchange of the school obtaining research funds. The on-going investigation has since revealed the collusion which unfavourably screened out females in favour of male candidates. The same article also stated that
“Studies show the share of female doctors who have passed the national medical exam has plateaued at around 30 percent for more than 20 years, leading some experts to suspect that other medical schools also discriminate against women.”
Well, that is sad indeed. I’m glad that this revelation has generated some discussions and protests in Japan. Though a former female doctor sympathised with the situation, I think the choice of a doctor leaving or retaining her/his profession or dreams should be hers or his and not be pre-determined by a system. In particular, should s/he decide to leave the profession, this decision should not affect other doctors or candidate students. If a female doctor is pregnant, her supervisor should not assume that she'd leave the industry either (as opposed to what is reported here by the Japan Times).
I think Japan definitely need to reform their medical system…
In saying that, it reminds me of two medical doramas that Okada Masaki had participated in as lead actors (the 2011 Black Jack and the 2012 Holy Monsters/Seinaru Kaibutsutachi) and another dorama where he was the main supporting actor (2010 the Golden Piggy/Ogon no Buta). The doramas covered medical lives in Japan, and now I think those conflicts (at least some of them) actually resembled real life situations. At least the corruption and collusion (Ogon no Buta, Seinaru Kaibutsutachi) and the idealised medical institutions in Japan seem to be based on real cases.
Which brings me the point of this blogpost: a plot bunny of a medical dorama based on this scandal. Acknowledging the sad and totally unfair situation in Tokyo Medical University, Seorri and I conversed as follows:
Seorri: Waiting for a jdrama with a plot involving this
Me: I was actually thinking about that too!! How interesting! I'd love it to have Okada Masaki portraying the lawyer or the insider, and a very strong actress to portray one of the female candidate students!
Seorri: I keep imagining him as a troubled but exceptional young doctor who has problems in dealing with female doctors. Now I want a strong female lead who could outsmart this asshole & prove that female docs are as good (or even better) than them male doctors!
Seorri: He's gonna be like a Yamada Haruhiko-kind of a doctor.
Me: that's excellent! He'll be that "troubled but exceptional young doctor who has problems in dealing with female doctors", but after realising how unfair female doctors are treated, he sympathised with them. Perhaps like d elite Yamada Haruhiko (but a doctor) getting enlightenment!
Me: OMG I was just writing that he'd be the Yamada Haruhiko-type of doctor when you wrote this one! great minds and the like!
Me: Despite d severity of d real-life issue, I'm actually GIDDY imagining Masaki narrowing his eyes in Yamada-Haruhiko-style as he debated d merit of a medical procedure with his female counterpart. When he finally realises she's correct, he gives her this bewildered look like this!
Seorri: Yes! We need more complicated & layered characters to fill up the characters! (OMG should we just write a fanfic about this?)
Me: OMG OMG! What a good idea! I was actually thinking about writing a blogpost to explore this idea further (acknowledging you, of course!). A very nice weekend (or procrastination...) project! (mustn't write right now, mustn't write right now, mustn't write right now, gotta work!)
So basically we agree that it would be GREAT for Okada Masaki to be involved in such a project (I’m SURE a script writer in Japan is already typing on her/his laptop, iPad, tablet or phone at the moment with the basic plot bunny!). Again, this is not to undermine the severity of the real life issue of the collusion in Tokyo Med Uni (or in other universities even). Rather, as I believe that TV and movies are powerful media for change, I think this is a "good" chance to promote this issue further so that those in power know that people are watching, and citizens and netizens are not just standing idly.
Anyway, back to the plot bunny.
This “Dr Yamada Haruhiko” needs to be very driven, very focused, totally by the book, and very competitive. However, he will NOT resort to collusion and bribery to get to where he is. As with the Chiisana Kyojin Yamada, this doctor needs to climb up the ladder himself and be so proud of what he had achieved that he totally forgot that he does have the privileges that helped him to be where he is now. Privileges like being born in a rich, highly-educated family. Being born as a male, and an attractive one at that.
An elite doctor. Just like the elite detective Yamada Haruhiko.
An elite doctor who is very skilful and smart, and he actually deserves what he has achieved so far. HOWEVER, that also blinds him from the injustice around him. He is totally oblivious of the fact that Japan has very few female doctors compared to male doctors, and even if he sees the statistics, he sees nothing fishy of it.
Then, as Seorri said, this Dr Yamada is very talented, exceptionally skilful, but also a troubled person. He has problems with female alpha (perhaps his mother left him to pursue her career?) and thus often clashes with female doctors (although "Dr Yamada" will usually not scream, for he can be very scary with his low volume voice). Usually doctors (males and females) would just let him be, but one female doctor in particular stands up to herself… and that does not sit well with this “Dr Yamada Haruhiko”.
I don’t particularly want this female doctor with youth or blinding beauty; I’d prefer she’s portrayed by an older actress with a classical beauty and intelligence such as Suzuki Honami (Gō), Nakatani Miki (Seinaru Kaibutsutachi), Hirosue Ryoko (Hakugin Jack, Omoi no Koshi), Otsuka Nene (Matataki). I think this female doctor should be a transfer from another hospital, thus her new presence unsettles “Dr Yamada” ’s comfort zone. In particular, we need a hard medical case whereby both doctors are right, but the female doctor’s approach proves to be the better options, both from the medical perspective and from the patient’s perspective. That would unsettle “Dr Yamada” even more.
Of course both doctors eventually will make up and become confidants the way Kosaka Shinichiro (Hasegawa Hiroki) and Yamada Haruhiko eventually were in Chiisana Kyojin, but it should not come easy. The female doctor should detest “Dr Yamada” for he represents what she detests (established career through privilege, despite he is also a skilful doctor on his own) and “Dr Yamada” definitely should detest the female doctor because she questions his authority (and perhaps she reminds him of his mother?).
Then to tie it with the Tokyo Medical University case, this type of collusion should be included in the drama. The female doctor might have been trying to uncover this fishy business, and “Dr Yamada” is originally against it because he thinks she was up to no good. But then something comes up that makes him realise she is a good person, and that’s where the tide turns.
We should have a lawyer, or some lawyers, in the story, because the Tokyo Med U case was uncovered by some lawyers as well. Let’s see… Matsuzaka Tori as one of the lawyers? Then we have a younger actress as the other lawyer… perhaps Kimura Fumino? She was so good in “Ito-kun A to E”; she’ll be able to play an ambitious, female, driven lawyer very well. But we can also have Aragaki Yui as the lawyer, bringing with her the detective skills she gained in Legal High and “Memorandum of Okitegami Kyoko”.
Would it be too dramatic if the female lawyer used to want to be a doctor, but failed because her exam paper was rigged? It can be too dramatic... but if it happens like that, then perhaps another lawyer (perhaps working for the university director) will dig in and say that she has vested interest in it. Or perhaps her sister wanted to be a med student but failed because of the system?
Phew! So much for the plot bunny and script! Let me know what you guys think!
Seorri, what else should I add or revise?
I do have the early version of a fan-fiction for this... but I need to do more medical research for it, so I'm not sure if I can publish it...
 |
| Nakatani Miki (left) & Okada Masaki (Seinaru Kaibutsutachi 2012) |
I caught ARJ’s tweet today about the scandal involving Tokyo Medical University’s policy in systematically reducing female candidates’ entrance exam scores by 20% and increasing male candidates’ scores by 20% to accommodate more male medical students in the university. The goal is to have more male doctors in Japan, and they argued that it was done because females would take maternity leave, or perhaps leave the career altogether, to be with their family.
According to Asahi Shinbun, this corrupted system was uncovered during an investigation of a bribery case involving the son of an education ministry bureaucrat who received a favourable treatment to enter Tokyo Med Uni in exchange of the school obtaining research funds. The on-going investigation has since revealed the collusion which unfavourably screened out females in favour of male candidates. The same article also stated that
“Studies show the share of female doctors who have passed the national medical exam has plateaued at around 30 percent for more than 20 years, leading some experts to suspect that other medical schools also discriminate against women.”
Well, that is sad indeed. I’m glad that this revelation has generated some discussions and protests in Japan. Though a former female doctor sympathised with the situation, I think the choice of a doctor leaving or retaining her/his profession or dreams should be hers or his and not be pre-determined by a system. In particular, should s/he decide to leave the profession, this decision should not affect other doctors or candidate students. If a female doctor is pregnant, her supervisor should not assume that she'd leave the industry either (as opposed to what is reported here by the Japan Times).
I think Japan definitely need to reform their medical system…
In saying that, it reminds me of two medical doramas that Okada Masaki had participated in as lead actors (the 2011 Black Jack and the 2012 Holy Monsters/Seinaru Kaibutsutachi) and another dorama where he was the main supporting actor (2010 the Golden Piggy/Ogon no Buta). The doramas covered medical lives in Japan, and now I think those conflicts (at least some of them) actually resembled real life situations. At least the corruption and collusion (Ogon no Buta, Seinaru Kaibutsutachi) and the idealised medical institutions in Japan seem to be based on real cases.
Which brings me the point of this blogpost: a plot bunny of a medical dorama based on this scandal. Acknowledging the sad and totally unfair situation in Tokyo Medical University, Seorri and I conversed as follows:
Waiting for a jdrama with a plot involving this https://t.co/3W3biPDhGK— 🇸🇪🇴🇷🇷🇮 (@seohaseurri22) August 8, 2018
Seorri: Waiting for a jdrama with a plot involving this
Me: I was actually thinking about that too!! How interesting! I'd love it to have Okada Masaki portraying the lawyer or the insider, and a very strong actress to portray one of the female candidate students!
Seorri: I keep imagining him as a troubled but exceptional young doctor who has problems in dealing with female doctors. Now I want a strong female lead who could outsmart this asshole & prove that female docs are as good (or even better) than them male doctors!
 |
| Nakatani Miki (left) & Okada Masaki (Seinaru Kaibutsutachi 2012) |
Seorri: He's gonna be like a Yamada Haruhiko-kind of a doctor.
Me: that's excellent! He'll be that "troubled but exceptional young doctor who has problems in dealing with female doctors", but after realising how unfair female doctors are treated, he sympathised with them. Perhaps like d elite Yamada Haruhiko (but a doctor) getting enlightenment!
Me: OMG I was just writing that he'd be the Yamada Haruhiko-type of doctor when you wrote this one! great minds and the like!
Me: Despite d severity of d real-life issue, I'm actually GIDDY imagining Masaki narrowing his eyes in Yamada-Haruhiko-style as he debated d merit of a medical procedure with his female counterpart. When he finally realises she's correct, he gives her this bewildered look like this!
 |
| Yamada Haruhiko in Chiisana Kyojin, Ep 1 |
Seorri: Yes! We need more complicated & layered characters to fill up the characters! (OMG should we just write a fanfic about this?)
Me: OMG OMG! What a good idea! I was actually thinking about writing a blogpost to explore this idea further (acknowledging you, of course!). A very nice weekend (or procrastination...) project! (mustn't write right now, mustn't write right now, mustn't write right now, gotta work!)
So basically we agree that it would be GREAT for Okada Masaki to be involved in such a project (I’m SURE a script writer in Japan is already typing on her/his laptop, iPad, tablet or phone at the moment with the basic plot bunny!). Again, this is not to undermine the severity of the real life issue of the collusion in Tokyo Med Uni (or in other universities even). Rather, as I believe that TV and movies are powerful media for change, I think this is a "good" chance to promote this issue further so that those in power know that people are watching, and citizens and netizens are not just standing idly.
Anyway, back to the plot bunny.
This “Dr Yamada Haruhiko” needs to be very driven, very focused, totally by the book, and very competitive. However, he will NOT resort to collusion and bribery to get to where he is. As with the Chiisana Kyojin Yamada, this doctor needs to climb up the ladder himself and be so proud of what he had achieved that he totally forgot that he does have the privileges that helped him to be where he is now. Privileges like being born in a rich, highly-educated family. Being born as a male, and an attractive one at that.
An elite doctor. Just like the elite detective Yamada Haruhiko.
An elite doctor who is very skilful and smart, and he actually deserves what he has achieved so far. HOWEVER, that also blinds him from the injustice around him. He is totally oblivious of the fact that Japan has very few female doctors compared to male doctors, and even if he sees the statistics, he sees nothing fishy of it.
Then, as Seorri said, this Dr Yamada is very talented, exceptionally skilful, but also a troubled person. He has problems with female alpha (perhaps his mother left him to pursue her career?) and thus often clashes with female doctors (although "Dr Yamada" will usually not scream, for he can be very scary with his low volume voice). Usually doctors (males and females) would just let him be, but one female doctor in particular stands up to herself… and that does not sit well with this “Dr Yamada Haruhiko”.
I don’t particularly want this female doctor with youth or blinding beauty; I’d prefer she’s portrayed by an older actress with a classical beauty and intelligence such as Suzuki Honami (Gō), Nakatani Miki (Seinaru Kaibutsutachi), Hirosue Ryoko (Hakugin Jack, Omoi no Koshi), Otsuka Nene (Matataki). I think this female doctor should be a transfer from another hospital, thus her new presence unsettles “Dr Yamada” ’s comfort zone. In particular, we need a hard medical case whereby both doctors are right, but the female doctor’s approach proves to be the better options, both from the medical perspective and from the patient’s perspective. That would unsettle “Dr Yamada” even more.
Of course both doctors eventually will make up and become confidants the way Kosaka Shinichiro (Hasegawa Hiroki) and Yamada Haruhiko eventually were in Chiisana Kyojin, but it should not come easy. The female doctor should detest “Dr Yamada” for he represents what she detests (established career through privilege, despite he is also a skilful doctor on his own) and “Dr Yamada” definitely should detest the female doctor because she questions his authority (and perhaps she reminds him of his mother?).
Then to tie it with the Tokyo Medical University case, this type of collusion should be included in the drama. The female doctor might have been trying to uncover this fishy business, and “Dr Yamada” is originally against it because he thinks she was up to no good. But then something comes up that makes him realise she is a good person, and that’s where the tide turns.
We should have a lawyer, or some lawyers, in the story, because the Tokyo Med U case was uncovered by some lawyers as well. Let’s see… Matsuzaka Tori as one of the lawyers? Then we have a younger actress as the other lawyer… perhaps Kimura Fumino? She was so good in “Ito-kun A to E”; she’ll be able to play an ambitious, female, driven lawyer very well. But we can also have Aragaki Yui as the lawyer, bringing with her the detective skills she gained in Legal High and “Memorandum of Okitegami Kyoko”.
Would it be too dramatic if the female lawyer used to want to be a doctor, but failed because her exam paper was rigged? It can be too dramatic... but if it happens like that, then perhaps another lawyer (perhaps working for the university director) will dig in and say that she has vested interest in it. Or perhaps her sister wanted to be a med student but failed because of the system?
Phew! So much for the plot bunny and script! Let me know what you guys think!
Seorri, what else should I add or revise?
I do have the early version of a fan-fiction for this... but I need to do more medical research for it, so I'm not sure if I can publish it...
