Middle East Crisis Directly Hits Nursing Care Frontlines: Nearly Half of Care Staff Already Feel "Supply Shortage"; Difficulty in Procuring Plastic Consumables Becomes a Barrier to Hygiene Management
A survey by Dr. Mate revealed that the Middle East crisis is severely impacting Japan's nursing care sector due to unstable crude oil supply leading to plastic product shortages. About half of nursing care staff already feel a lack of essential materials like disposable gloves and aprons, causing strong anxiety over maintaining hygiene and threatening stable operations amidst increasing medical needs.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: May 1, 2026 at 23:00
- 🔍 Collected: May 1, 2026 at 14:31
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: May 1, 2026 at 15:34 (1h 2m after Collected)
Dr. Mate Co., Ltd. (Head office: Chuo-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director and Doctor: Naoki Aoyagi; hereinafter, Dr. Mate), a company providing medical solutions for nursing care facilities, conducted a survey targeting 300 active nursing care professionals (care workers, nurses, care managers, facility directors) working at nursing care facilities nationwide in Japan. The survey investigated the impact of increasing demand for medical care and the tense situation in the Middle East on the nursing care industry, as well as staff awareness regarding knowledge acquisition.
The instability of crude oil supply due to the escalating situation in the Middle East is having a serious impact on the procurement of "naphtha," the main raw material for plastics. The depletion of these plastic products is not only a concern in advanced medical settings such as hospitals but is also beginning to affect nursing care sites where medical needs are increasing. Dr. Mate has introduced services, including "Night On-Call Proxy™," in nursing care sites in all 47 prefectures and operates a medical and nursing care collaboration platform that connects medical institutions in real-time. Recognizing the current global situation as a serious risk for nursing care sites, Dr. Mate decided to conduct this survey.
**Survey Summary**
- **Medical Response Increases in 60% of Nursing Care Sites; "Sputum Suction" Most Frequent Need**
61.0% of active nursing and care professionals reported an increase in medical response situations in recent years. "Sputum suction" was the most frequent specific need, followed by wound care and infectious disease control, indicating a diversification of duties.
- **About Half of Respondents Feel Impact on Operations Due to Plastic Product Shortage**
Approximately half of all respondents (148 people) answered that the supply situation of consumables "has an impact." The difficulty in procuring "disposable gloves" and "disposable aprons," which are indispensable for hygiene management, is particularly prominent, and the shortage is beginning to spread to some medical materials.
- **70% of Frontline Staff Have Strong Anxiety About Future Material Procurement, Feeling a Crisis in Maintaining Hygiene Management**
A total of 70.0% expressed anxiety about future material procurement, with concerns about plastic-related products being overwhelmingly high. The supply instability caused by global situations and other factors is becoming a threat to the stable operation of nursing care sites.
**"Medical Needs" Are Increasing in Nursing Care Settings**
In this survey, when asked about the necessity of acquiring medical knowledge and performing medical care (e.g., tube feeding, suction, insulin injections) in recent years, approximately 60% (61.0%) of all respondents answered that the situations requiring medical response "have increased." This highlights the reality that the standards of specialized knowledge required of staff are rapidly rising in diverse nursing care settings such as special nursing homes for the elderly and long-term care health facilities, as users' conditions become more severe and their needs more advanced.
When the group that reported an increase in medical needs (183 people) was asked about specific medical needs using multiple answers, "sputum suction (103 people)" was the most frequent, indicating that more than half felt its necessity. This was followed by "wound (bedsore) management (88 people)," "infectious disease control (79 people)," and "tube feeding (76 people)." These results indicate that duties in nursing care settings are becoming more specialized and diversified, extending beyond daily physical assistance to include preparations for infectious diseases and management of tube feeding.
**About Half Reported "Impact on Plastic Product Supply"**
Regarding the supply situation of plastic products as of April 2026, approximately half of all respondents, 148 people, answered that it "has an impact" on their operations.
Specifically, the difficulty in procuring consumables indispensable for hygiene management, such as "disposable plastic gloves (116 people)" and "disposable aprons/gowns (80 people)," is notable. Furthermore, the shortage is spreading to excretion care products like diaper disposal bags and urine pads, and even to medical materials such as suction tubes, which is beginning to threaten the stable operation of nursing care sites.
**70% of All Respondents Feel Anxiety About Future Material Procurement Difficulties**
Furthermore, in the survey on awareness regarding future material procurement, 210 people, reaching 70% of the total, answered that they "feel anxiety that procurement will become difficult."
When those who feel anxiety were asked about specific items expected to be unstable in supply, "plastic-related products (disposable gloves, aprons, etc.)" were overwhelmingly the most common at 182 people, followed by "nursing/medical consumables (diapers, sheets, etc.)" and "hygiene products (masks, disinfectants, etc.)." This indicates that frontline staff have an extremely strong sense of crisis regarding the stable supply of consumables that support hygiene management in nursing care settings, amidst the prolonged impact of global situations and rising raw material prices.
In the free comments section, there were reports of delays due to regular stockouts, efforts to conserve plastic gloves, anxiety about infectious disease control, and even moves to cut labor costs instead of material costs.
**From Dr. Mate Representative, Naoki Aoyagi**
Through this survey, it has become clear that the anxiety about consumable supply is not just a cost issue.
The instability of crude oil supply due to the escalating situation in the Middle East is having a serious impact on the procurement of "naphtha," the main raw material for plastics. The depletion of these plastic products is not only a concern in advanced medical settings such as hospitals but is also beginning to affect nursing care sites where medical needs are increasing. Dr. Mate has introduced services, including "Night On-Call Proxy™," in nursing care sites in all 47 prefectures and operates a medical and nursing care collaboration platform that connects medical institutions in real-time. Recognizing the current global situation as a serious risk for nursing care sites, Dr. Mate decided to conduct this survey.
**Survey Summary**
- **Medical Response Increases in 60% of Nursing Care Sites; "Sputum Suction" Most Frequent Need**
61.0% of active nursing and care professionals reported an increase in medical response situations in recent years. "Sputum suction" was the most frequent specific need, followed by wound care and infectious disease control, indicating a diversification of duties.
- **About Half of Respondents Feel Impact on Operations Due to Plastic Product Shortage**
Approximately half of all respondents (148 people) answered that the supply situation of consumables "has an impact." The difficulty in procuring "disposable gloves" and "disposable aprons," which are indispensable for hygiene management, is particularly prominent, and the shortage is beginning to spread to some medical materials.
- **70% of Frontline Staff Have Strong Anxiety About Future Material Procurement, Feeling a Crisis in Maintaining Hygiene Management**
A total of 70.0% expressed anxiety about future material procurement, with concerns about plastic-related products being overwhelmingly high. The supply instability caused by global situations and other factors is becoming a threat to the stable operation of nursing care sites.
**"Medical Needs" Are Increasing in Nursing Care Settings**
In this survey, when asked about the necessity of acquiring medical knowledge and performing medical care (e.g., tube feeding, suction, insulin injections) in recent years, approximately 60% (61.0%) of all respondents answered that the situations requiring medical response "have increased." This highlights the reality that the standards of specialized knowledge required of staff are rapidly rising in diverse nursing care settings such as special nursing homes for the elderly and long-term care health facilities, as users' conditions become more severe and their needs more advanced.
When the group that reported an increase in medical needs (183 people) was asked about specific medical needs using multiple answers, "sputum suction (103 people)" was the most frequent, indicating that more than half felt its necessity. This was followed by "wound (bedsore) management (88 people)," "infectious disease control (79 people)," and "tube feeding (76 people)." These results indicate that duties in nursing care settings are becoming more specialized and diversified, extending beyond daily physical assistance to include preparations for infectious diseases and management of tube feeding.
**About Half Reported "Impact on Plastic Product Supply"**
Regarding the supply situation of plastic products as of April 2026, approximately half of all respondents, 148 people, answered that it "has an impact" on their operations.
Specifically, the difficulty in procuring consumables indispensable for hygiene management, such as "disposable plastic gloves (116 people)" and "disposable aprons/gowns (80 people)," is notable. Furthermore, the shortage is spreading to excretion care products like diaper disposal bags and urine pads, and even to medical materials such as suction tubes, which is beginning to threaten the stable operation of nursing care sites.
**70% of All Respondents Feel Anxiety About Future Material Procurement Difficulties**
Furthermore, in the survey on awareness regarding future material procurement, 210 people, reaching 70% of the total, answered that they "feel anxiety that procurement will become difficult."
When those who feel anxiety were asked about specific items expected to be unstable in supply, "plastic-related products (disposable gloves, aprons, etc.)" were overwhelmingly the most common at 182 people, followed by "nursing/medical consumables (diapers, sheets, etc.)" and "hygiene products (masks, disinfectants, etc.)." This indicates that frontline staff have an extremely strong sense of crisis regarding the stable supply of consumables that support hygiene management in nursing care settings, amidst the prolonged impact of global situations and rising raw material prices.
In the free comments section, there were reports of delays due to regular stockouts, efforts to conserve plastic gloves, anxiety about infectious disease control, and even moves to cut labor costs instead of material costs.
**From Dr. Mate Representative, Naoki Aoyagi**
Through this survey, it has become clear that the anxiety about consumable supply is not just a cost issue.