ViCare
Your companion for seeing a doctor in Japan
ViCare is a free, non-profit ViMai app that helps Vietnamese people in Japan see a doctor with confidence: understand what the doctor says, read hospital papers and medicine bags, find the right department and know how to call an ambulance. No ads and no account; your personal data stays on your phone.
- Free
- Non-profit
- No account
- Data stays on your phone
- Tiếng Việt · 日本語 · English
Opens in your browser, nothing to install. Listening through the microphone and reading papers with the camera are in the phone app only.
Get ViCare
ViCare is being prepared for the App Store and Google Play. The download buttons on this page will go live as soon as the app is approved.
Read the guidesOnly on ViCare
Two signature features
Doctor-visit interpreter
Lay the phone on the desk between you and the doctor. The doctor first sees a consent request in Japanese. The app listens through the microphone using the phone's own speech recogniser (on-device when available), matches what it hears against over 3,700 doctor–patient sentences and shows the meaning in Vietnamese. Numbers such as doses and days are always flagged for you to double-check. Audio is never recorded. You can save the visit to your diary.
Read hospital papers and medicine bags
Take a photo or pick one from your gallery; the Japanese text is read on the phone and never uploaded. A medicine bag (薬袋) becomes a morning–noon–evening–bedtime schedule. It also reads appointment slips (予約票), receipts (領収書, saved to your diary), test results, questionnaires (問診票) and consent forms. Anything uncertain is left as the original text with a prompt to ask the pharmacist; the app never guesses.
Everything for one visit
From the moment you feel unwell to taking your medicine home.
I feel sick
Pick your symptoms to see which department to visit, with warning signs that mean you should call 119 now.
Nearby clinics
Choose a department, browse over 140,000 medical facilities in 47 prefectures from the Ministry of Health's open data (open ones first), or open Google Maps to find one near you, with the Japanese name on the signboard and phrases for booking by phone.
Emergency 119 · 110 · #7119 · #8000
What to say on 119 in Japanese, with your saved address filled in. Show your emergency info screen to staff.
My health
Emergency medical info shown in Japanese (allergies, conditions, regular clinic, contact), a visit diary with clinic and pharmacy costs, yearly totals for 医療費控除, and current medicines.
Phrasebook
More than 2,000 phrases by situation: reception, symptoms, pharmacy, phone calls. Enlarge them for staff; furigana included.
Illness guide
More than 170 common illnesses: warning signs, which department, self-care and what to say at the clinic.
Insurance & procedures
70 articles on health insurance, costs, 高額療養費, 労災, family and work, with official sources.
Medical dictionary
More than 2,500 terms. Search by kanji, kana, romaji, Vietnamese with or without accents, or English.
A clinic visit with ViCare
Five steps, from home to the pharmacy.
At home: find the right department
Open “I feel sick” and pick your symptoms. Warning signs prompt you to call 119; otherwise the app suggests a department and opens Google Maps for clinics near you.
At reception (受付)
Hand over your insurance card and show your emergency info in Japanese. Use the phrasebook and dictionary to fill in the questionnaire (問診票).
In the consultation (診察)
Open the interpreter and lay the phone on the desk. Once the doctor agrees, read the Vietnamese meaning; buttons ask the doctor to slow down or write it down.
Payment and pharmacy (会計・薬局)
Photograph the receipt to save the cost. At the pharmacy, photograph the medicine bag to see the schedule and save it to your medicines.
After the visit
The visit and your next appointment are in your diary. At the end of the year, see your total costs for 医療費控除.
Web version or phone app?
Most content works in a browser, but ViCare's two signature features need the app on your phone.
| Feature | Web | Phone app |
|---|---|---|
| Phrasebook, illness guide, procedures, dictionary, search | Yes | Yes |
| Emergency info, visit diary, current medicines | Yes, stored in the browser (lost if browser data is cleared) | Yes, stored on the phone |
| Clinic search by department on Google Maps, Emergency screen | Yes (calling depends on the browser; a copy button is provided) | Yes, opens Phone and Maps directly |
| Microphone interpreter | Not yet (sample phrases only) | Yes |
| Camera reading of papers and medicine bags | No (examples only) | Yes, read on the phone |
| Medicine and follow-up visit reminders | No | Yes, notifications on the phone |
The ViCare web version is being prepared; its link will be added here when it opens. For the interpreter and document reader, use the phone app.
Your data stays on your phone
- No account. ViCare has no server and uploads none of your data.
- Emergency info, visit diary, medicines and settings are stored only on your phone.
- Photos of papers are read on the phone and never sent anywhere.
- The microphone uses the phone's speech recogniser, on-device when possible. ViCare never records audio.
- No ads, no analytics, no tracking.
Guides: seeing a doctor in Japan
Free articles you can read now, no app needed.
- How to see a doctor in Japan: a step-by-step guide for foreignersWhere to go, what to bring, and every step from reception to the pharmacy.
- Medical interpreting in Japan: getting help and phrases for the doctorWays to get language help, symptom phrases and what doctors ask.
- How to call 119 in Japan: ambulance and emergency numbersWhat to say on 119 and when to use #7119, #8000 and 110.
- How to read a Japanese medicine bag (薬袋): 食前, 食後, 食間, 頓服What the words on the bag mean and how to take medicine safely.
- Japanese health insurance: the 30% co-pay, 高額療養費 and 労災Who must join, the 30% co-pay, the monthly cap and work injuries.
- Finding a clinic in Japan: which department, and English or Vietnamese supportA symptom–department table, where to search, and finding language support.
- Medical expense deduction (医療費控除) in Japan, explainedWho qualifies, the calculation, what counts and how to file.
ViCare FAQ
The ViMai ecosystem
ViCare is part of ViMai. More apps for Vietnamese people living and working in Japan:
ViMai Tokutei TaxiTokutei Ginou (SSW i) automobile transport test practice, taxi category: 20 CBT mock exams, 1,000 questions
ViMai Tokutei Transport: Truck DriverTokutei Ginou (SSW i) automobile transport test practice, truck category: 20 CBT mock exams, 1,000 questions
ViMai Seibishi 3kyuClass 3 automobile mechanic (3級自動車整備士) written exam practice: 60 papers, 1,800 questions, 3 subjects
ViMai KidsA learning app for ages 3–7: Vietnamese letters, hiragana, katakana, maths, thinking and 14 games
MaimaiCalorie counting with Vietnamese food, plus water, sleep, weight and cycle tracking
ViMai Menkyo: Japan LicenseJapanese driving theory: lessons and mock tests for Karimen, Honmen and licence conversion – 60 exams, about 2,350 questions
ViMai Gino 1 Seibi: Automobile MaintenanceTokutei Ginou (SSW i) automobile maintenance test practice: 20 mock exams in the JASPA sample format, 780 questions
ViMai Tokutei Kaigo: Care Worker Exam PracticeTokutei Ginou (SSW i) care worker (介護) test practice: 20 skills tests, 30 Japanese tests, 1,350 questions
ViBJT: BJT Business Japanese Test PracticeFree practice for the BJT Business Japanese Proficiency Test: 10 mock tests (800 questions) and 4,400 business vocabulary and keigo cards
