May 6, 2021
Yukiko Okimura was just 11 years old when her mother, a single parent, was left paralyzed by a traffic accident on her way to work in Kanagawa Prefecture in 2001.
A tragic upheaval in the life of any elementary school child, what made it doubly transformative for Okimura was suddenly finding herself taking on the role of her mother’s main carer, with no relatives ready to step in.
Nevertheless, Okimura was far from alone in being faced with what is usually regarded as an adult task. A recent government survey has revealed that in each classroom of Japan’s junior and senior high schools, there are, on average, one or two such “young carers” who routinely look after family members.
Yukiko Okimura was just 11 years old when her mother, a single parent, was left paralyzed by a traffic accident on her way to work in Kanagawa Prefecture, west of Tokyo, in 2001.
1st nationwide survey sheds light on young carers in Japan
May 2, 2021 (Mainichi Japan)
Former young carer Yukiko Okimura (R) poses for a photo with her mother in Kanagawa Prefecture in 2007, when she was a high school student. (Photo courtesy of Yukiko Okimura)(Kyodo) TOKYO (Kyodo) Yukiko Okimura was just 11 years old when her mother, a single parent, was left paralyzed by a traffic accident on her way to work in Kanagawa Prefecture, west of Tokyo, in 2001. A tragic upheaval already in the life of any elementary school kid, what made it doubly transformative for Okimura was suddenly finding herself taking on the role of her mother s main carer, with no relatives ready to step in.
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In Japan, some caregivers of elderly and sick relatives are as young as 11 Junior high school students in Tokyo walk home after school. File photo: Kyodo
Yukiko Okimura was just 11 years old when her mother, a single parent, was left paralysed by a traffic accident on her way to work in Kanagawa Prefecture, west of Tokyo, in 2001.
A tragic upheaval already in the life of any primary school kid, what made it doubly transformative for Okimura was suddenly finding herself taking on the role of her mother s main carer, with no relatives ready to step in.
Nevertheless, Okimura was far from alone in being saddled with what is usually regarded as an adult task. A recent government survey has revealed that there are, on average, one or two such young carers in the classrooms of Japan s junior and senior high schools who routinely look after family members.