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On NHK NewsWatch 9 yesterday, they were talking about the shortage of
emergency room doctors, and the resulting situations lately where hospitals
were forced to turn away emergency patients. In many cases there was a doctor
on duty, but not qualified to treat some emergencies. So the doctor would
refuse the patient rather than treat the patient and possibly get sued if
something went wrong.

While interviewing a doctor, this phrase was shown in the subtitle

> その頑張りは、すべてむだというかそういう気持ちになる。

(I did not think to listen to the Japanese audio, though I suppose its what he
said.)

The English dubbed audio said

> There's a saying "Honest people only make fools of themselves."

I can understand the intent though I have not heard such a saying before.

Regarding the Japanese sentence, is this a set phrase (or saying) of some
kind?

As best as I can make out it is saying "As for endurance, resulting good
feelings or such are said to be entirely useless." or "Resulting good feelings
or such are said to be entirely useless, so endure it.", although its likely
I'm wrong.

Especially I don't think I quite understand というかそういう.
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question
translation meaning set-phrases
Is there a Japanese saying like その頑張りは、すべてむだというかそういう気持ちになる , related to the working conditions of doctors in a hospital?
Unless this is a set phrase, I think we need more context to go on--who said
the quote, what was the line before and after, etc.

I don't see the provided translation matching up though.

Here is my attempt:

> その頑張りは、すべてむだというかそういう気持ちになる。
>
> All that hard work for nothing, you know...that's how I feel.

Here is how I break it down:

> その頑張りは、/ すべてむだ / というか / そういう気持ちになる。
>
> (as for) that hard work,/ all (for) naught / you know (or, how should I put
> it,.) / this kind of feeling becomes.

references:

[http://tangorin.com/general/というか](http://tangorin.com/general/%E3%81%A8%E3%81%84%E3%81%86%E3%81%8B)

[http://eow.alc.co.jp/search?q=というか&ref=sa](http://eow.alc.co.jp/search?q=%E3%81%A8%E3%81%84%E3%81%86%E3%81%8B&ref=sa)

[http://tangorin.com/general/そういう](http://tangorin.com/general/%E3%81%9D%E3%81%86%E3%81%84%E3%81%86)
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answer
There was a news segment on public hospitals a few months ago focusing on a
doctor from [柏原]{かいばら} hospital in Hyogo prefecture (Western Japan). Here is
[an article](http://www.jinken.ne.jp/medical/kaibara/) covering what happened
(Japanese). The prefecture kept closing down the hospitals and consolidating
them due to a shortage of doctors, and he was the only pediatrician for
several hospitals in the area. As a result, he was the only pediatrician for
18,000 children. He handed in his resignation because the working conditions
were just too poor.

This is what he said:

> 「すでに月に７日以上宿直や小児輪番を担当し、夜ごとひっきりなしに外来患者を診ていました。睡眠不足で疲れ切っていて、いつ事故を起こしてもおかしくな
> い状況でしたから、もう限界。小児科が実質私１人となる体制で『勤務を続ける』と言うほうが無責任だと思ったんです」

Rough translation:

> I was already working the night shift 7 days or more per month while working
> on rotation as a pediatrician, and each night without fail I would have out
> patients come in. I was sleep deprived, exhausted, but since a serious
> accident could occur at any time I hit my limit. I was the only real
> pediatrician in the area, and I thought that it would be irresponsible to
> "just keep on working".

My guess is that the quote you give is from a doctor with a similar
experience. I think that the quote you gave would be translated more as, "All
of my hard work is for nothing, or at least that's how it makes me feel." Like
Dr. [和久]{わく?} he probably thinks that despite all his hard work, the situation
isn't improving, and he's just burning himself out for no good reason (or at
least feels like that's the case).

In the case of Dr. [和久]{わく?}, the parents of children in the area started a
group to lower his workload, not come in the middle of the night with trivial
problems (like slight fevers), bringing him food, and otherwise trying to make
him a bit less stressed.
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answer