????日本有22%以上的人口年齡在65歲或以上，其他發(fā)達(dá)國(guó)家也有很多步其后塵。在這種情況下，企業(yè)界發(fā)現(xiàn)，在每年總值超過1億美元的保健技術(shù)市場(chǎng)中，遠(yuǎn)程監(jiān)控類產(chǎn)品要比消費(fèi)電子產(chǎn)品的勝算更大。關(guān)注這個(gè)日益壯大的市場(chǎng)的同時(shí)，丸紅株式會(huì)社（Marubeni）等大型商社開始進(jìn)軍穿戴式健康監(jiān)控儀這類設(shè)備的市場(chǎng)領(lǐng)域。就連汽車部件制造商都開始看中醫(yī)療領(lǐng)域的市場(chǎng)潛力，認(rèn)為它前景可期，有望接替日本在全球市場(chǎng)規(guī)模大幅縮水的汽車部件產(chǎn)品的地位。

????總部位于名古屋的朝日INTECC株式會(huì)社（Asahi Intecc）已經(jīng)從一家汽車線纜制造商轉(zhuǎn)型成為當(dāng)代外科領(lǐng)域先進(jìn)技術(shù)供應(yīng)導(dǎo)管導(dǎo)線的全球領(lǐng)軍企業(yè)。這類不銹鋼線纜和導(dǎo)管的生產(chǎn)至今已經(jīng)填補(bǔ)了這家公司原有汽車部件業(yè)務(wù)90%的業(yè)績(jī)，它的醫(yī)療設(shè)備目前已經(jīng)行銷于85個(gè)國(guó)家。社長(zhǎng)宮田昌彥在一次采訪中告訴醫(yī)療科技資訊網(wǎng)站Medtechinsider.com： “人們問我，為什么朝日會(huì)選擇循環(huán)器官、腦神經(jīng)（應(yīng)用）這類挑戰(zhàn)度最高的領(lǐng)域，可是不冒一定風(fēng)險(xiǎn)的話就沒法造出革新性的設(shè)備。”

????這種迎著風(fēng)險(xiǎn)而上的意識(shí)在日本十分難得。盡管朝日的故事并沒有什么過人之處，但有跡象顯示，想要更有成效地發(fā)掘、利用日本本土的創(chuàng)新人才，光有政府的政策還不夠。日本一位頂尖科學(xué)家早前曾經(jīng)以政府名義進(jìn)行過若干嘗試，但最近卻以災(zāi)難性的結(jié)果告終，而他本人也黯然辭職。由于一沒預(yù)算，二沒權(quán)限，中村佑輔教授還沒做滿一年就辭去了職位。他指責(zé)相關(guān)政府部門各自為政，一盤散沙。“日本沒有人從整體上考慮過國(guó)家的醫(yī)療服務(wù)，”中村有一次接受《讀賣新聞》采訪時(shí)說。如今，他在美國(guó)芝加哥大學(xué)（the University of Chicago）擔(dān)任教授一職。“日本正在迅速地落后于其他國(guó)家。”（財(cái)富中文網(wǎng)）

????譯者：薄錦

????With over 22% of Japan's population already aged 65 or older, and much of the developed world following suit, businesses are finding remote monitoring gadgets, among others, are a better bet than consumer electronics in a care technology market worth well over a billion dollars annually. With an eye on this growing market, large trading firms such as Marubeni are stepping in to market devices such as wearable health monitors. Even car parts manufacturers are choosing the medical field as a promising alternative to Japan's incredibly shrinking market for its vehicle part products.

????Nagoya-based Asahi Intecc has transformed itself from manufacturing wiring for cars into a global leader in catheters and guide wires used in today's advanced surgery techniques. Such stainless steel wires and catheters now make up 90% of the former auto parts business, with the firm currently distributing its medical devices to 85 countries. "People ask me why Asahi chose the most challenging areas such as circulatory organ and cranial nerve [applications], but innovative devices cannot be created without taking risks," company President Masahiko Miyata told Medtechinsider.com in an interview.

????Such risk-taking in Japan is rare. And while the Asahi story is not exceptional, there are indications it will take more than government polices to productively tap Japan's innovation genius. Previous attempts led by one of the country's leading scientists on behalf of the state ended in disaster recently with his resignation. Given no budget or authority, Prof. Yusuke Nakamura resigned from his post after less than a year. He blamed the intractability of various turf-defending ministries. "Nobody in Japan is thinking about the nation's medical services comprehensively," says Nakamura, who is currently a professor at the University of Chicago, in an interview with the Yomiuri newspaper. "Japan is quickly falling behind other countries."