Nagasaki Association for Hibakushas Medical Care (NASHIM) was established
in 1992. The activity of this organization is many-sided. It subsidizes
rendering qualified medical assistance to the people suffering from Nagasaki
atomic bombardment who live now outside Japan and to all radiation victims
of the world. The Association finances the work of qualified Japan specialists
in population recovering in the areas contaminated by radiation all over
the world. NASHIM is also engaged in publishing books. Thus in 1995 the
books «Radiation: questions and answers» - in Russian and «Nagasaki symposium:
radiation and human organism» - in English were published. In 1996 the
book in two languages (Japanese and Russian) «External environment radiation
and state of health of the population and agricultural animals in Central
Kazakhstan» was published.
Some years ago a documentary film «Kazakhstan today» about history,
culture and traditions of this country as well as about the problems connected
with rendering medical assistance to persons suffering from nuclear tests
at Semipalatinsk proving ground was shot. NASHIM is also engaged in issues
connected with Chernobyl problems.
At present this Association with support of Japanese Ministry of Foreign
Affairs prepares the publication of various books in electronic form that
will become the cheapest and most available training materials for physicians
and medical students of all CIS countries. In the regions suffering from
Chernobyl nuclear power station failure the dataware infrastructure
will be created in the nearest future. It is planned to create a
great number of training aids on morphology, physiology and molecular biology,
prophylaxis, early diagnostics and treatment of thyroid. One of them is
the work of Vladimir Sergeyevich Parshin, Doctor of Medical Sciences, leading
scientific officer of radiation diagnostics methods department of Medical
Radiological Scientific Center of Russian Academy of Medical Sciences.
Financial difficulties did not allow to publish the book in large edition
but its value as an excellent training material is priceless. Therefore
the idea to create electronic version of this Atlas occurred and this Atlas
will become a long-awaited companion of physicians that carry out a difficult
task in rendering qualified medical service to the population even in most
distant quarters of the former Soviet Union countries. At present the work
in this field is carried out by employees of Minsk State Medical Institute
of Byelorussia Republic in order to create electronic library.
The XXI century must become the century of joining up the efforts of
physicians and scientists of all the countries directed to eliminate consequences
of the radiation accidents.
In conclusion I would like to express my appreciation to professor
Shunichi Yamashita as well as to all those who took part and rendered assistance
in creation and publishing this book.