Medical assistance is assistance by a nurse or associate nurse when a doctor or dentist examines or treats a patient. Medical assistance includes alleviating suffering associated with medical treatment, predicting the appearance of symptoms, and responding to changes in the conditions.

Assistance in medical treatment, along with medical care, is stipulated in the Act on Public Health Nurses, Midwives, and Nurses as the duties of nurses and associate nurses. This is the exclusive work of nursing professionals.

The auxiliary acts performed by nurses encompass all types of medical activities, including medical acts that may pose a risk to the patient’s life or body. However, nurses cannot perform any medical acts until they receive instructions from a doctor. In response to an instruction, the nurse must assess whether a doctor should perform the action or whether it would be safe for the nurse to perform the action. The nurse considers factors such as the contents of the instructions, the patient’s condition, their competency, the degree of invasion caused by the action, and the type of drug. (This decision is based on several factors, including the specifics of the instruction, the patient’s condition, the nurse’s competency, the invasiveness of the procedure, and the type of medication involved.) Simultaneously, professional judgment is required to determine the extent to which the action may pose a risk to the patient. Both doctors and nurses are legally responsible for assisting in medical treatment.

• Inoue, K. (2010). Basic knowledge of legal terminology (p. 84). Nihon Iji Shinpo.
• Japan Nursing Association. (2007). Explanation of major terms related to nursing: Conceptual definitions, historical changes, social context.
  Retrieved from http://www.nurse.or.jp/home/publication/pdf/2007/yougokaisetu.pdf
• Matsuki, M. (Ed.). (2007). Introduction to nursing: What is nursing? What is nursing? (4th ed.). Nouvelle Hirokawa.