Several members of the Korean Society of Clinical Microbiology (KSCM) have attended general meetings of the Japanese Society for Clinical Microbiology (JSCM) for more than 6 years. Although the composition of the JSCM is quite different from that of the KSCM and the formal language of the meeting is Japanese, it is worth reviewing the program to gain an overview of the direction and progress of the JSCM. The author is convinced that there is a lot to learn from the JSCM, especially in terms of how to maintain a very low antibiotic resistance rate, and how to prevent hospital-acquired infections. I hope that both academic societies will develop further and create a continuous exchange of helpful information, which could act as a good model for exchange between other specialty groups in separate countries. (Ann Clin Microbiol 2013;16:149-151)