Facing a growing shortage of nursing staff amid a new wave of coronavirus infections, Osaka Prefecture is preparing to request that the Self-Defense Forces dispatch nurses to a new facility for seriously ill patients that is set to open on Dec.15.
“I’m in discussions with the Self-Defense Forces, where there are nurses,” Osaka Gov. Hirofumi Yoshimura said on a local television program Saturday, as the prefecture entered the first weekend of a local state of emergency.
On Sunday, economic revitalization minister Yasutoshi Nishimura confirmed the government would consider dispatching SDF nurses to Osaka as per Yoshimura’s request.