Our Aims
Many people around the world still don’t have access to the healthcare they need. BRIDGE aims to use Japanese medical technology and human resources to assist regions in need, creating a foundation for local people to become independent. BRIDGE works to bring love and hope to the world through medical cooperation.
BRIDGE's Mission
- To improve the level of public health in countries around the world through healthcare-based cooperation from Japan.
- To build sustainable systems in cooperation with local community medical facilities and government.
- To actively conduct academic research and public relations activities that both domestically and internationally to spread the use of vital medical technologies.
Representative Message
NPO BRIDGE was established as a NPO in 2014 by Professor Narufumi Suganuma, Dean of Kochi Medical School. The organization was based around the overseas medical technology support that Professor Suganuma had been providing since the 2000s at the request of international institutions. The NPO was founded to support medical care in the home countries of international students hosted by Professor Suganuma.
I took over from Professor Suganuma in April 2016, becoming the new Chairman. We would like to express our gratitude to all those supporting us. This support allowed us to become the first international healthcare-related group in Kochi Prefecture to be certified as a NPO.
And the dissemination of diagnostic radiological reading techniques for pneumoconiosis, which Professor Suganuma is leading as an expert for international organizations, particularly in Asia, and The BRIDGE continues to work on community health and public health projects in the Pantanal region of Brazil and in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
We will continue to actively expand our initiatives, enabling Japan to fulfill its responsibility to the world. We ask for your continued support and cooperation.
Chairman Hiroyuki Seki
Representative Profile
After graduating from the Jikei University School of Medicine, Seki began working for the university’s Department of Otolaryngology. He later returned to his hometown of Kochi, working for a time at Kochi Medical University. Since April 2003, he has been the head of the Otolaryngology Department at Niyodo Hospital in Ino Town. He has been practicing in accordance with the philosophy of Jikei Medical University,"Don't diagnose illness, diagnose sick people".
Founder's Message
Six years have passed since ten individuals came together to form BRIDGE, building a spiritual link between Japan and the rest of the world. The international health activities that I have personally been involved in since the 1990s have evolved into various medical support activities in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Thailand, Indonesia, and other southeast Asian countries, as well as Brazil, becoming a specified non-profit organization. BRIDGE became an authorized NPO under the leadership of Chairman Hiroyuki Seki. The organization's continuous support for the state of South Mato Grosso, a medically underdeveloped region in Brazil, has not ceased, even in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
To date, BRIDGE's activities have been supported by over 600 individuals and corporations. Since we are a small organization, most of the donations we receive from our supporters are used for local activities (except for minor operating expenses). Your support reaches the local Brazil directly.
BRIDGE will continue to work towards new challenges. We hope that you will continue to watch us grow and thrive. I would also like to ask for your ongoing support.
Founder Narufumi Suganuma
Founder's Profile
Suganuma was born in Nagasaki, Japan in 1968. He was brought up in Kagawa Prefecture until he graduated from high school. After graduating from Okayama Medical School,Okayama University he worked at Tokyo Metropolitan O-tsuka Hospital, Mizushima Central Hospital, and Fukui Medical Science school, Fukui University before becoming a professor at Kochi Medical School, Kochi University in 2007.
Past and Future
Began operating as a voluntary organization after the International Labor Organization commissioned pneumoconiosis training meetings in Asian countries.
Started a school health project in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Started a Pantanal Regional Medical Care Project in Brazil.
Hosted the Annual Meeting (West Japan Branch) for the Japan Association for International Health at Kochi University.
Convened an establishment preparation meeting in Nankoku City, Kochi Prefecture. The organization's name was changed to "Approved Specified Non-Profit Corporation BRIDGE", commencing its activities as a non-profit corporation.
THE BRIDGE was approved as a non-profit organization with high public interest.
Realizing a project to build a regional core hospital in Pantanal region of Brazil, We are working hard every day.
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