21 Jun WHAT ARE THE FAMILY RESOURCES FOR THIS INTERNATIONAL FAMILY?
This case study is a composite of actual situations. Marianne, who is American, and Ken Shimizu, who is Japanese, have worked in Tokyo for over 30 years as Methodist missionaries. They have annual furloughs and occasional sabbaticals, during which they visit relatives and sponsoring organizations and engage in continuing education in the United States. They met as college students in the United States, and their three grown children have established their own careers in the United States.
Ken’s 98-year-old mother resides with Marianne and Ken. She is not Christian but has always been extremely supportive of Ken and Marianne’s work. Ken teaches at a large Christian university, whereas Marianne has served in various church-related positions over the years. As missionaries, they live in subsidized post–World War II housing near Ken’s university. Marianne has been a frugal housewife, preparing local foods in the Japanese style for her family.
Ken, who is nearly 60, recently learned that he has glaucoma. By the time it was discovered, he had lost a significant amount of peripheral vision. Although Marianne delivered all three children at a Christian hospital in Tokyo, she gets her annual physical examination when visiting relatives in the United States. She has never believed that the Japanese health system is as proactive as that in the United States. On her most recent visit to the United States, Marianne learned that she has hypertension. Her physician prescribed a medication that is readily available in Japan, but the physician was concerned about the level of stress in Marianne’s life. Mother Shimizu is quite confused and requires considerable care, but it is unthinkable for Ken, the only child, to put his mother in a long-term-care facility. Even if he would, the quality of facilities in Japan leaves much to be desired. Most of the responsibility for Mother Shimizu falls on Marianne, in addition to her work. Marianne’s relatives are urging her to consider placing Mother Shimizu in a church-related life-care community near Marianne’s family in the United States, where Marianne and Ken would like to retire. Marianne’s own parents lived in this facility at the end of their lives. She is considering these issues as she returns to Tokyo.
Study Questions
Identify some of the cultural issues that may lead to conflict in this international family.
What are the family resources for this international family?
What factors within the Japanese health system may account for the late diagnosis of
Ken’s glaucoma?
What practical issues might arise for the Shimizus if Mother Shimizu were placed in a long-term-care facility in the United States?
What dietary factors may contribute to Marianne’s hypertension?
In what ways might you consider Ken to be countercultural as a Japanese man?
What social pressures might Marianne have faced, given some of her choices, as a housewife in Japan?
What pressures will Ken likely experience as he considers how to meet the needs of both his mother and his wife?
Compare and contrast the fertility and mortality rates of Japan and the United States.
Do the traditional Japanese maintain sustained eye contact with strangers? Why or why not?
To which drugs might Japanese people have greater sensitivity than that of white ethnic populations?
How do most Japanese people meet their need for calcium?
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