Dispatch from Tokyo

I’m in Japan today lecturing at the TOPOS Conference. per the request of several colleagues.  Think of it as TED in Tokyo.    I’ve been asked to discuss the Meaning of Life in an Aging Society without referencing Healthcare IT, which is a real challenge for a CIO.

The approach I’ve taken is to explore life through the eyes of those in my family - my father who passed away last March, my mother, my wife and my daughter.   I’m reviewing our experiences together and the impact they’ve had on my life, while recounting what is meaningful to them.   Here’s the powerpoint I’m using.

Tomorrow will be a day of meetings with government, academic, and industry leaders to discuss the use of cloud computing in Japanese healthcare.   Although there have been examples of cloud computing used after 3/11 (the great Tohoku earthquake, tsunami, and Fukushima nuclear plant destruction) there is still great distrust of the cloud.    The internet in Japan is considered a swamp of malware and bad actors, which it is.  However, there are technologies and policies that can ensure the data integrity and privacy of patient identified data.

Japan does not need more locally installed large servers, it needs a cloud of low cost commodity servers distributed geographically such that any natural event will not cause data loss or disruption.

After my meetings, I will climb Mt. Fuji over night, with the hope of watching the sunrise from 12,500 feet - the rising sun in the land of the rising sun.   The mountain opens for hiking on July 1, so early July is generally the time less traveled.   There will be subfreezing temperatures and light snow at the top, but 70F temperatures at the bottom.   I’ve already told my hiking partner, a professor from Kyushu University, that summiting is optional.   Returning to Tokyo is mandatory.

Wish me luck.