With Employees

Santen hosted an internal event, “Vision Experience Weeks,” from October 9 through October 20 in 2023.　This event, open to all Santen employees, is designed to encourage people to reconsider the importance of eye health through learning, experiencing and sharing “seeing and not seeing.” It also seeks to deepen their understanding of people with visual impairments at work and in the world at large while fostering compassion for others

Operating in over 60 countries and regions around the world, Santen offers the opportunity to think deeply about vision to people in each location. For example, induction training in China includes an important section designed to deepen new employees’ understanding of Santen’s vision: a session in which they are assigned to try walking while wearing a blindfold. In EMEA, an internship program has been provided for visually impaired students since 2021, providing not only the interns but also Santen employees with a valuable opportunity for learning.

The first company family event was held. We had a wonderful time talking about “Happiness with Vision” with employees and their children. They talked about “What is vision?” “What does your vision bring to your life?” and “What are the lives of people with visual impairment like?” This event was not only educational for the children but also provided fresh insights for employees.

Blind Football Kids Camps, held by the Japan Blind Football Association (JBFA), are two-day sports camps targeted at visually impaired children. During each camp, many Santen employees serve as supporters of the participating children and foster patient-centered and people-centered perspectives in themselves through interaction with those children and their parents. This program has enabled participants from Santen to discover that visually impaired people differ in terms of how they can see, and to listen carefully to the parents of the participating children sharing the difficulties they face and their concerns, thereby helping those employees gradually understand the perspectives of patients and those close to them.  

As recognition of Santen's efforts spread, Mohamed Abdin, our colleague, was nominated as one of the distinguished symposiasts to speak at the 2023 Congress of the Japan Society of Clinical Ophthalmology, one of the two major ophthalmology societies in Japan, in the conference management program. Abdin made a proposal on the issue of employment for the visually impaired who lost their sight in the middle of their lives.

Yoshihara:
I have noticed that, although many people without visual impairments actually want to help visually impaired people when they encounter them, they do not know what to do because there are no visually impaired people around them, so many of them do not take any action.

Yoshihara:
I advise them on the importance of speaking to visually impaired people. Their first-hand experience with blindness in particular helps the participants fully recognize the importance of doing so. It is difficult for visually impaired people to perceive the situation around them and who are around them, and where they are. I say to the participants that, if they come across a visually impaired person in trouble, they should speak to that person, and, because that person is the expert in how best to help him or her, the participant should just ask the visually impaired person what they should do, in order to find a solution.

Shigeo Yoshihara
In charge of Core Principle and CSV planning (global) and is a para-athlete legend.

Torii:
I believe that I have been able to give the participants a surprise or discovery by actively sharing with them what I can do naturally. Many people are indifferent to or ignorant about disabilities and impairments. The first step they should take is to learn about disabilities and impairments. I believe this is a massive step toward reducing the psychological barrier between people with and without disabilities or impairments.

Torii:
I keep in mind to say to the participants that even blind people can do many things and are making daily efforts and devising effective ways to become able to do what they cannot do now. I believe that my attempts to have the participants understand that there is no difference between people regardless of whether or not they have disabilities or impairments, and to interact with them while viewing blindness as a kind of individual characteristic, have provided the participants with a discovery or surprise.

Kento Torii
In charge of Core Principle and CSV planning (global), also contributes to corporate branding by utilizing his experience as a representative of the Japan blind football team.