Japan will be short some 35,000 nurses in 2001 as demand for their services rises in line with the new nursing-care insurance system, a Health and Welfare Ministry report says.

The ministry is drafting a plan to encourage former nurses to return to nursing and to reduce the rate at which nurses leave the profession in hopes of increasing the number of nurses by 200,000 to 1.35 million by 2005, a move that will almost balance supply and demand, the report said.

According to the ministry report, there will be about 1.18 million nurses next year, as compared with 1.15 million at present, some 35,000 short of the number it is estimated will be needed.

The number of nurses is projected to increase every year, reaching 1.35 million in 2005 to narrow the shortage to some 5,300 nurses.

Surveys on '01 babies

The Health and Welfare Ministry will conduct followup surveys on babies born during two predetermined periods next year in an attempt to gather data to tackle various social issues, according to ministry officials.

The survey is expected to target roughly 50,000 babies nationwide, all born Jan. 10-17 and July 10-17.

The ministry plans to keep track of the children until they reach age 20, the officials said.

The survey will focus mainly on their living environment, family composition, parents' approaches to raising children, sharing housework and child care, and whom their parents consult with on child-rearing issues.

Questions regarding parents' income and occupations will also form part of the survey.

Parents will be asked to fill out questionnaires and return them to the ministry once a year, although the ministry may review the procedures in about five years, the officials said.

The ministry is also considering starting a similar survey on adults, encompassing some 200,000 in their 20s and 30s, in 2002, the officials added.