About EPA

In August 2008, Indonesian nurse/ certified-care worker candidates entered Japan under the Japan-Indonesia Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA). They were followed by the Filipino nurse/certified-care worker candidates under the Japan-Philippine Economic Partnership Agreement who entered Japan in May 2009. Up to the present day, more than 1,300 nurse and certified-care workers candidates from these two countries have entered Japan. This is the first experience for Japan to accept health care workers under bilateral agreements. For this reason it attracts many people's attention in Japan, and has led to many discussions about how to best accept the foreign health care workers.

I have been studying about nurse migration under the EPA program since 2007, together with international and multi-disciplinary research members from various universities in Japan, the University of Indonesia and the University of the Philippines.

Selected English Articles

• Hirano YO, Wulansari SA.:
  The Japan-Indonesia Economic Partnership Agreement Through the Eyes of Indonesian Applicants: A Survey and a Focus Group Discussion with Indonesian Nurses.
  Bulletin of Kyushu University Asia Center 3:77-90, 2009
• Ishii Y, Hirano YO.:
  Attitudes on Migration among Filipino Nursing Students: Comparison between the Urban and Rural Areas.
  Bulletin of Kyushu University Asia Center 3:105-112, 2009
• Hirano YO, Ogawa R, Ohno S.:
  How Do Japan's Hospitals Evaluate the Economic Partnership Agreement Scheme?: A Comparative Survey between Hospitals Accepting the First Batch of Foreign Nurses and Those Accepting the Second Batch.
  Bulletin of Kyushu University Asia Center Vol.5:127-139, 2010
• Setyowati, Susanti H, Yetti K, Hirano YO, Kawaguchi Y.:
  The Experiences of Indonesia Nurses in Japan Who Face the Job and Cultural Stress in Their Work: A Qualitative Study.
  Bulletin of Kyushu University Asia Center Vol.5:175‐181, 2010
• Hirano YO, Ogawa R, Ohno S.:
  A Comparative Study on Indonesian and Filipino Candidates for Registered Nurse and Certified Care Workers Coming to Japan under the Economic Partnership Agreements: An Analysis of the Results of Questionnaire Surveys on Socio-economic Attribution of the Respondents and Their Motivations to Go to Japan.
  Southeast Asian Studies Vol.49 (4): 594-610, 2012
• Setyowati, Ohno S., Hirano YO., Yetti K.:
  Indonesian Nurses' Challenges in Passing the National Board Examination for Registered Nurses in Japanese: Suggestions for Solutions¸ Southeast Asian Studies¸Vol.49 (4): 629 -642¸2012
• Kawaguchi Y., Hirano YO., Ogawa R., Ohno S.:
  Exploring Learning Problems of Filipino Nurse Candidates Working in Japan: Based on Results of a Practice National Board Examination of Japan Given in English,
  Southeast Asian Studies, Vol.49 (5): 643-651, 2012
• Hirano YO：The Mental Health status of Indonesian Candidates Leaving for Japan under the Japan-Indonesia Economic Partnership Agreement: After the Great East Japan Earthquake, International Journal of Japanese Sociology, Vol.21 (1), 37-45, 2012