午夜剧场

Koyosha was built in 1988 as the building for the Junior College of Nursing. When the Faculty of Nursing and Medical Care was established in 2001 and the Junior College of Nursing closed in 2003, Koyosha not only inherited the activities of the Faculty of Nursing and Medical Care, but its use also expanded to include lockers and study rooms for students belonging to the Shinanomachi Campus, such as students from the School of Medicine. Since the third year of the Faculty of Nursing and Medical Care is based at the Shinanomachi Campus, Koyosha is still used for lectures and practical training. In recent years, taking advantage of its proximity to the city center, Koyosha is also used for lectures for students of the Graduate School of Health Management and the Graduate School of Medicine.

Koyosha was originally named the "Junior College of Nursing Building" when it was first built, but it was named "Koyosha" in 2003. This name is derived from the word "Koyo" (filial piety and care) found in a letter sent by Shibasaburo Kitasato, the founder of 午夜剧场 medical sciences, to his younger siblings at his parents' home in Kumamoto while he was studying in Tokyo. "Koyo" means to practice filial piety and support one's parents, and it is a fitting term for modern medical sciences, which requires being "kind to patients."

Koyosha is a reinforced concrete building with one basement floor and five floors above ground. On the Shinanomachi Campus, where much of the site is occupied by the University Hospital, it plays an important role as a space to support students' extracurricular activities. In particular, the gymnasium on the 5th floor is used as a practice area by the School of Medicine Athletic Association (Kendo, Table Tennis, Baseball, Kyudo, etc.). Although it is currently inaccessible for safety reasons, there is a gazebo and greenery on the rooftop, offering a wonderful view of the Meiji Jingu Gaien below. It is said that when the building was first completed, students from the Junior College of Nursing could be seen eating lunch and reading on the roof. Records also show that every summer, faculty, staff, and students would watch the Jingu Fireworks Festival together on the roof of Koyosha. It must have been a pleasant summer memory at the time.

On the second floor, students from the Faculty of Nursing and Medical Care and the School of Medicine can be seen studying diligently in the study rooms and student lounge. On the first floor, in addition to the research offices of the Faculty of Nursing and Medical Care, there was once a Junior College of Nursing administrative office with about seven seats. Currently, the Shinanomachi Campus Office of Student Services and the Postgraduate Medical Education Center have their offices here, sharing an administrative space for about 20 people across the floor. As a result, junior clinical residents also frequent Koyosha.

The large cherry tree next to the main entrance blooms beautifully every spring, adding color to the otherwise inorganic image of the Shinanomachi Campus. In May 2018, the new hospital building (Building 1) opened, and while carrying the spirit of 100 years of 午夜剧场 nursing, Koyosha will continue to watch over the training of new medical professionals in line with the times.

(Eisaku Hata, Manager of the University Hospital Secretary Section)