New helipad at Jichi Medical University Hospital
A new helicopter landing pad has been built at the Jichi Medical University Hospital in the city of Shimotsuke, Tochigi Prefecture, Japan
The helipad was constructed as part of a new multi-story car park, and was built alongside a new radiation therapy building.
The landing site will provide easier access to the hospital for both air ambulances and prefectural fire and rescue helicopters when it opens for full-scale operation next April.
Until now, aircraft had to land in the grounds of the university – with an approximate 10 minute journey between the helicopter and the hospital itself. From the new helipad, patients can now be transported to the procedure room in around three minutes.
The helipad is also expected to triple the number of helicopters accepted to land from the current rate of around 50 per year, to about 150 per year in future.
Iizuka City Hospital in Fukuoka Prefecture also opened a new helipad earlier this year.