Hospital Japanese: Departments, Symptoms, Prescriptions, and Follow-Up

Core examples: 内科, 外科, 皮膚科, 症状, 診察, 検査, 処方, 予約, 紹介状, お大事に.

A hospital visit is a sequence of language stations

Hospital Japanese changes by location. At reception, you hear insurance and appointment language. With the nurse, symptom and history language. With the doctor, examination and diagnosis language. At the cashier, payment language. At the pharmacy, dosage language. At the end, follow-up instructions.

The key principle is:

Hospital Japanese is stage-based. Sort vocabulary by where it occurs.

This article supports language literacy, not medical decision-making. For actual care, follow qualified medical professionals.

Departments: 科

Hospital departments often end in:

〜科

Common departments:

内科 internal medicine/general medicine

外科 surgery

皮膚科 dermatology

小児科 pediatrics

眼科 ophthalmology

耳鼻咽喉科 ear, nose, and throat

整形外科 orthopedics

A department name tells you where to go, but symptoms do not always map neatly. If unsure, reception may guide you.

Reception language

At reception:

予約はありますか。 Do you have an appointment?

保険証をお願いします。 Please provide your insurance card.

初診ですか。 Is this your first visit?

再診ですか。 Is this a follow-up visit?

Related:

診察券 patient registration card

受付 reception

会計 cashier/payment

Learner action: distinguish 初診 and 再診.

Symptoms and intake

Clinical staff may ask:

今日はどうされましたか。 What brings you in today?

いつからですか。 Since when?

痛みはありますか。 Do you have pain?

熱はありますか。 Do you have a fever?

Use simple patient phrases if needed:

頭が痛いです。 My head hurts.

咳が出ます。 I have a cough.

お腹が痛いです。 My stomach hurts.

A form may use kango terms such as 頭痛, 咳, 腹痛, 発熱.

診察 and 検査

診察

means medical examination/consultation by a doctor.

検査

means test/examination.

Examples:

血液検査 blood test

尿検査 urine test

レントゲン X-ray

CT検査 CT scan

検査結果 test result

Learner action: 診察 is the doctor’s examination; 検査 is a test procedure.

処方 and pharmacy language

処方

means prescription.

Related:

処方箋 prescription document

薬局 pharmacy

服用 take medicine

1日3回 three times a day

食後 after meals

頓服 as needed

A prescription instruction must be read carefully. Do not rely only on recognizing the medicine name.

紹介状 and referrals

紹介状

means referral letter.

A clinic or hospital may provide a referral to another institution or specialist. Large hospitals may require or prefer a referral depending on system and policy.

Learner action: 紹介状 is a document that carries medical information and referral purpose, not an informal recommendation note.

予約 and follow-up

予約

means appointment/reservation.

Follow-up phrases:

次回の予約 next appointment

経過を見ましょう let’s monitor the course/progress

もう一度受診してください please come for another consultation

症状が悪化した場合は受診してください if symptoms worsen, seek medical care

Follow-up instructions may be more important than the diagnosis label for immediate action.

お大事に

お大事に

means “take care” in health contexts. Staff may say it when you leave.

It is formulaic and kind, not a medical instruction by itself.

Example bank walkthrough

内科

Internal/general medicine.

Learner action: common first department.

外科

Surgery.

Learner action: department and treatment domain.

皮膚科

Dermatology.

Learner action: skin issues.

症状

Symptoms.

Learner action: what the patient experiences.

診察

Doctor examination/consultation.

Learner action: stage in medical visit.

検査

Test/examination procedure.

Learner action: blood tests, imaging, etc.

処方

Prescription.

Learner action: medication instructions follow.

予約

Appointment.

Learner action: scheduling and follow-up.

紹介状

Referral letter.

Learner action: document connecting medical institutions.

お大事に

Take care.

Learner action: closing formula.

Hospital visit language map

Sort vocabulary by stage:

1. Reception: 受付, 予約, 保険証, 初診, 再診.
2. Intake: 問診票, 症状, 既往歴, アレルギー.
3. Doctor: 診察, 診断, 治療, 説明.
4. Testing: 検査, 血液検査, レントゲン, 結果.
5. Prescription: 処方, 処方箋, 服用, 用法.
6. Payment: 会計, 領収書, 明細書.
7. Follow-up: 予約, 再診, 紹介状, 悪化した場合.

Hospital stage table

Hospital vocabulary belongs to stages.

Stage sorting reduces panic during real visits.

Department-name caution

The correct department is not always obvious from symptoms. 内科 can be a broad entry point, but hospitals may route patients differently. Reception staff may ask symptom questions before directing you.

Useful phrase:

何科を受診すればよいか分かりません。 I’m not sure which department I should visit.

Follow-up instructions matter

At the end of a visit, listen for:

〇日後に来てください。 薬を飲み切ってください。 悪化した場合は受診してください。 紹介状を書きます。

These instructions may matter more for action than the name of the diagnosis.

A strong tool for this article would organize language by hospital stage.

Suggested functions:

1. Stage selector: reception, intake, examination, testing, pharmacy, payment, follow-up.
2. Phrase cards with audio.
3. Patient-friendly explanations.
4. Department chooser.
5. Prescription instruction decoder.
6. Emergency warning prompts.
7. Medical safety disclaimer.

Final rule

Hospital Japanese is not one register. It is a route.

Learn which words belong at reception, intake, examination, testing, pharmacy, cashier, and follow-up. 内科, 診察, 検査, 処方, 予約, and 紹介状 each belong to a stage.

In medical settings, know what action the phrase requires.