Category Archives: Reports,Features, Statistics

RM570m revenue from health tourism last year

Posted on March 22, 2013 | Comments Off on RM570m revenue from health tourism last year

Kuala Lumpur , March 21 (Bernama) :

The health tourism sector has generated RM570.5 million in revenue last year, following improved customer experience, proactive alliances and niche marketing.

Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said, “We have seen a more than 20 percent growth in terms of health tourism since the past three years.”

Health tourism has been outlined as one of the entry point projects under the National Key Economic Areas (NKEA), and the Malaysia Healthcare Travel Council was established to drive the promotion.

Speaking at the launching of the Healthcare in Asia 2013 conference, here, today, Liow said as for the national budget allocation, the ministry hoped to push for at least 10 percent to be allocated for the health sector compared to the current eight percent.

However there would be no cut back in budget allocation for the health sector, he added.

On another aspect, Liow also assured that the government would always retain a vested interest to intervene decisively in the health system despite the growing private-driven initiatives in healthcare.

“This is to maintain four broad objectives, that is, universal coverage, equity in health delivery and financing, ensuring financial protection and addressing market failures in health,” he added.

source: http://www.mysinchew.com / Home> News / March 21st, 2013

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Posted in Medical Tourism/Health Tourism, Reports,Features, Statistics

Thailand: Medical hub for Nepalis

Posted on March 13, 2013 | Comments Off on Thailand: Medical hub for Nepalis

NepalCT13mar2013

Bangkok :

The number of Nepali medical tourists visiting Thailand has increased in recent days. The first class hospitals, high class medical technology, top-class physicians and significantly lower treatment costs have attracted many Nepali medical tourists.

Thailand has also developed itself as the most important and popular medical hub in Asia and worldwide. Thai medical services are renowned worldwide, resulting in a rapid growth in related industries such as spa, Thai massage, Thai herbs, serviced apartments and health tourism.

Some of the renowned people who took advantage of the Thailand medical facilities are former queen Komal, Sita Dahal (wife of Pushpa Kamal Dahal —president of CPN-Maoist) among others. It is also a well-known fact that when former late prime minister Girija Prasad Koirala needed medical care in 2006, he chose to travel to Bangkok’s Bumrungrad Hospital for treatment. At present, former crown prince Paras is also undergoing treatment at Samitivej Hospital.

Western accreditation is also a vital component for confidence in undergoing foreign medical treatments and Bangkok’s Bumrungrad and Samitivej hospitals were among Southeast Asia’s first recipients of the United States’ prestigious Joint Commission International (JCI) certification.

According to the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), 25,728 Nepalis have visited the country in the year 2011. The Thai Embassy Nepal said that they do not have record regarding the medical patients but a significant number visit for medical treatment.

Bumrungrad International Hospital is the main medical tourism hospital in Thailand and one of the biggest in the world. The hospital is state-of-the-art, equipped with top-of-the-line technology and has well-trained staff. Annually, Bumrungrad serves more than 420,000 international patients from over 190 countries.

Kenneth Mays, Hospital Market Director at Bumrungrad Hospital, said that the hospital records around 2,000 Nepali patients annually especially for treating cardiovascular disease, cancer, digestive cancer, neurology and plastic surgery among others.

The cost of medical treatments in Thailand is significantly lower compared to identical treatment in the West and other developed parts of the world. So, many medical tourists from developing countries can also afford it, said the market director.

Bumrungrad is the first Asian hospital accredited by the US-based Joint Commission International in 2002, and 15 hospitals are now accredited in Thailand.

“Thailand’s high standards and healthcare expertise make it a world leader in medical tourism,” said Mays. He said Thailand’s medical professionals are highly qualified. The physicians, surgeons and nurses have been trained to the highest levels, while many specialists have been conducting research and gaining experience at the world’s best medical institutes.

According to TAT, 1.4 million international patients have received medical treatment in Thailand and the number is increasing annually. Statistics show that medical tourism has been a growing segment of Thailand’s tourism and health-care sectors in the past years.

Medical tourism in Thailand is growing at a yearly rate of 16 per cent, while in financial terms the foreign medical services sector is expected to make a whopping 100 billion baht by 2015. Currently, medical tourism makes up 0.4 per cent of the GDP, while tourism overall accounts for six to seven per cent, the third most important economic driver in Thailand.

TAT began promoting medical tourism in 2004, has a detailed medical tourism website that highlights many of the most popular treatments available, including dental work, dermatology and cosmetic surgery, as well as listing reputed hospitals, making it easy for potential visitors to decide on a procedure.

source: http://www.thehimalayantimes.com / Home> Top Stories / by Laxmi Maharjan / March 11th, 2013

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Posted in Health /Medical Treatment For Overseas Treatment, Medical Tourism/Health Tourism, Reports,Features, Statistics, Travelling For Surgery Abroad / Medical Surgery Overseas

UK’s NHS may adopt ID cards in struggle to curb health tourism

Posted on March 6, 2013 | Comments Off on UK’s NHS may adopt ID cards in struggle to curb health tourism

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An ambulance drives past Basildon hospital in Essex, east of London (Reuters/Andrew Winning)

The UK may introduce an ‘entitlement card’ as a requirement for those seeking medical treatment in the country. The measure is widely seen as a part of a crackdown on health tourism – when non-nationals come to the country for free treatment.

The reform is currently under discussion, but if enacted it would only allow access to the National Health Service (NHS) for those who have regular residency; to obtain this status would take between six months and a year.

Upon applying for healthcare, patients would then be required to present a special ID card. Emergency and antenatal care would still be available free to the public.

The proposal was put forward by Frank Field, Labour MP for Birkenhead, and Nicholas Soames, Tory MP for Mid Sussex, who co-chair a cross-party parliamentary group on balanced immigration.

The news sparked worries among activists, but was welcomed by doctors, many of whom say they find it difficult to ask patients if they are entitled to NHS care over fears of appearing racist.

“The important thing is to make sure that people are not drawn to the UK artificially,” Foreign Secretary William Hague told BBC on Sunday, adding that benefit tourism “has to be tackled.”

Hague was largely referring to visitors from the EU, specifically Romania and Bulgaria, who now are allowed free movement within the union. He declined to give approximate figures of those coming to the UK, however, saying that such an estimate would be a “guesswork.”

This is the latest development in British attempts to deal with the large influx of immigrants into the country.

In January, the UK announced a new citizenship test .  According to reports, the new exam would include questions about Monty Python and details of the Queen’s life, and other culturally specific trivia.

source: http://www.rt.com / Home> News / March 04th, 2013

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Posted in Medical Tourism/Health Tourism, Reports,Features, Statistics, Uncategorized

Expert committee soon for medical tourism

Posted on March 5, 2013 | Comments Off on Expert committee soon for medical tourism

Steps will be taken to enhance infrastructure and facilities in medical college hospitals

MedtourCT05mar2013

 (Left to Right) Director of JIPMER T.S. Ravikumar, past president of AAEMI Anita Bhavnani, the current President, Pankaj Arora, and Puducherry Tourism Minister P. Rajavelu address the media at the Minister’s office in Puducherry on Monday —Photo: G. Krishnaswamy / The Hindu

Puducherry Tourism Minister P. Rajavelu said the government would form an expert committee to explore the possibilities of promoting medical tourism.

The Minister, who held an important meeting with Dr. Pankaj Arora, President of the American Academy for Emergency Medicine in India (AAEMI), and Dr. T.S. Ravikumar, Director, JIPMER, told The-Hindu on Monday that Puducherry had excellent potential to promote medical tourism, which was gaining momentum in some cities in South India.

There were nine medical colleges in Puducherry, which included the renowned JIPMER, the first medical educational institute in Puducherry. No other town in South India has such a large a number of medical colleges and other allied institutes. It was a blessing not only to students but also patients, including from foreign countries. Hence, it has been decided to set up a committee with line departments so as to transform Puducherry as a destination for medical tourism , he said Mr. Rajavelu said a conference would be convened soon under the chairmanship of Chief Minister N. Rangasamy to carry forward the agenda for medical tourism. With the available infrastructure and treatment facilities, Puducherry could garner global attention and become the foremost choice for patients from abroad.

Infrastructure development necessary

Since treatment was expensive in countries such as England, USA and others, there was a possibility to attract patients from European countries also. Fine tuning the infrastructure was the need of the hour. Steps would be taken to enhance infrastructure and facilities in medical college hospitals so as to fulfil the expectation of patients from abroad also.

Hospitals such as JIPMER and PIMS have been developed to the level of attracting patients from abroad. This was an indication that Puducherry could be developed as a hub of medical tourism.

However, it was important for the hospitals to get international accreditation to attract patients not only from western countries but also from neighbouring ones.

source: http://www.TheHindu.com / Home> National> Tamil Nadu / by Special Correspondent / Puducherry, March 05th, 2013

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Posted in Associations/Organisations/Government/NonGovernment, Health /Medical Treatment For Overseas Treatment, Medical Tourism/Health Tourism, Reports,Features, Statistics, Travelling For Surgery Abroad / Medical Surgery Overseas

Coimbatore’s medical expertise elusive to foreign patients due to poor air connectivity

Posted on March 5, 2013 | Comments Off on Coimbatore’s medical expertise elusive to foreign patients due to poor air connectivity

Coimbatore :

City hospitals, that have been striving to make Coimbatore a popular medical tourism destination, are a helpless lot, since there is nothing they can do to improve air connectivity, a major criteria in promoting such tourism. Coimbatore has carved a niche for itself in providing speciality medical care and expertise. However, unless the government works towards improving the city’s air connectivity, marketing such services would prove futile.

Dr. S Rajasekaran, director, Ganga Hospital, says there is a huge gap between the city’s potential and actual performance. “In 2012, we treated more than 100 international patients, all of them referred to us by surgeons outside India,” he said. Though this is encouraging much has to be done to tap real potential. Pointing out that without direct air connectivity it is difficult to position Coimbatore as the medical tourism destination, he stressed the need for aggressive marketing in the international arena. For now, most international patients fly to Chennai and take a connecting flight to Coimbatore.

In Coimbatore, Ganga Hospital,  Kovai Medical Center adn Hospital  (KMCH), KG Hospital and Gem Hospital are among the top centres to promote medical tourism. Doctors also suggest that apart from accessibility, the city’s visibility as a medical tourism destination needs to be improved. “The presence of specialty hospitals, availability of personalised service and cost effectiveness (about 30 to 40 pc less) are our strengths and inadequate marketing is our minus,” Dr.Rajasekaran added. Few hospitals like Ganga Hospital and KG Hospital have even created a separate page on their websites to promote medical tourism.

Another private hospital that has gone a step further to promote medical tourism and has even created relationship centres abroad to attract international patients, is KMCH. “Most of our international patients are from Middle East and African countries and so we have created such centres in Dubai, Muscat, Oman, Ghana and Guinea,” said Dr. Nalla G Palaniswami, chairman, KMCH.

Despite the glaring disadvantages like lack of direct flight connectivity, hospitals in Coimbatore have managed to attract a flow of foreign patients on a regular basis by banking on its strengths. However, to get to the next level, improved air connectivity is a must.

source: http://www.articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / Home> City> Coimbatore / by S M Arun, TNN / March 05th, 2013

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Posted in Medical Tourism/Health Tourism, Reports,Features, Statistics