Category Archives: Travelling For Surgery Abroad / Medical Surgery Overseas

For as low as US$700, you can have a four-night stay at Kuala Lumpur’s Shangri-La, a city tour, and an “executive health screening” which includes a medical consultation and blood and urine tests. For the same price, you can have a basic dental treatment instead, which features a dental x-ray, some fillings and a treatment plan under Malaysia’s medical tourism campaign.

This was the offer made by Malaysia Healthcare Travel Council representatives in their recent visit to New Zealand. About 2,000 New Zealanders visited Malaysia as medical tourists and the government-run council plans to increase the numbers. This is something it has been aggressively marketing since it was set up in 2009.

Medical tourism increased ten-fold in as many years and is one of the top revenue earners for the country. The country is going to great pains to make sure this sector continues to earn big bucks. Even to the extent of ensuring there is a special lounge for medical tourists at Kuala Lumpur international airport (KLIA) and Penang International Airport.

Latest boost to Malaysia’s healthcare sector

IHH Healthcare Bhd, Asia’s largest hospital operator by market value and world’s second-largest listed healthcare operator by market capitalisation, recently announced expansion plans. It plans to add 3,000 beds to its existing 7,000 beds by 2017 through new hospitals and expansion of current ones, and is also looking for mergers and acquisitions to accommodate the expected increase in medical tourism. IHH Healthcare is 43.6 per cent owned by Khazanah Nasional, Malaysia’s main government-linked investment company.

Last month, a Memorandum of Understanding (Mou) on co-operation was signed between Malaysian hospitals and Vietnamese insurance companies in Hanoi. The signing ceremony, organised by Insmart Co Ltd, saw the inclusion of Malaysia’s National Heart Institute, one of the leading cardiovascular and thoracic health centres in the region, Malaysian private hospitals Ramsay Sime Darby Health Care and Pantai Hospital Kuala Lumpur, with insurance providers in Vietnam, including Post and Telecommunication Joint Stock Insurance Corporation, Vietinbank Insurance Company and Petrolimex Insurance Corporation.

This means Malaysian hospitals will be complementing the Vietnamese insurance companies’ service and Vietnamese policyholders will be heading to Malaysia for their medical needs. More than 5,000 Vietnamese medical tourists visited Malaysia for healthcare treatment in the 2013-14 period. The figure was expected to double this year, Malaysia Healthcare Travel Council CEO Sherene Azli was quoted as saying.

Another big player in private healthcare and healthcare tourism, KPJ Healthcare Bhd announced plans to increase its revenue from medical tourism to RM90 million this year from RM78 million in 2014 (US$24 million and US$21 million). “Most of KPJ’s medical tourism patients are from Southeast Asia (Indonesia), the Middle East (Libya) and East Africa (Somalia) among others, and they are here seeking our expertise, be it in oncology, orthopaedics, neurology or heart treatment”, according to their spokesman.

Medical tourism dollars

Malaysia recently won the Medical Travel “Destination of the Year 2015″ award, a prestigious accomplishment presented by UK’s International Medical Travel Journal. Efforts are being made to make sure medical tourism dollars keep rolling into the country.

Tourism and Culture Ministry undersecretary Alan Abdul Rahim was quoted as saying Malaysia attracted almost 800,000 medical tourists in 2014, from 770,000 in 2013. Earnings last year are estimated at RM730 million (US$195 million). For the 11th Malaysia Plan period, the income from medical tourism is expected to grow 15 per cent annually, generating revenue of about RM2 billion (US$530 million) by 2020.

source: http://www.establishmentpost.com / The Establishment Post / Home> Views & News> Healthcare> Finger on the Pulse / by Vanitha Nadaraj / June 18th, 2015

The Four Points Hotel has teamed up with Cisco Unified Communications and Cancun’s Galenia Hospital to become the first medically interconnected hotel.

The new connection allows medical tourism patients staying at the Four Points to have an interconnected network with the hospital, offering a higher standard of medical care.

Cancun’s Four Points Hotel has 108 rooms and four suits designated for the service. The rooms are fully equipped with enterprise-class IP telephone call processing, data and voice services, WiFi, advanced mobility capabilities and rich conferencing services.

Ramon Guevara, General Director Factor Integracion, says that working alongside Cisco has allowed them to support the Galenia Hospital in becoming the first hospital with a Medical Grade Network in which they can cement their position in the medical tourism market.

The Four Points is the first hotel to be interconnected with a hospital. This connection will help physicians offer high tech communication to their patients.

Rogelio Velasco, vice president Cisco Mexico , explains,  “Cisco Medical-Grade Network solutions gives medical personnel anytime, anywhere access to patient information under a tailor made reliable and highly secure network.

Having the Four Points Hotel connected to Hospital Galenia by way of Cisco technology, will give health care practitioners the confidence to maintain communication in all premises that can support them in their daily patient care work.

source: http://www.riviera-maya-news.com /  Riviera Maya News / by Anne Perez / March 13th, 2015

Americans often move for relief from the high cost of living after they retire and 56 million Americans under age 65 will have trouble paying medical bills. Interstate migration to certain states is high (Arizona, Colorado, Florida, North Carolina, Oregon, and Texas). State and local taxes are one consideration, but health care is a significant consideration for many people. Some foreign countries have made an industry of attracting American expats (Costa Rica, Panama) and even offer low-cost health insurance.

An article in the January issue of Newsweek highlights a growing trend: travelling to undergo major surgery. Americans are flocking to countries such as Costa Rica, Mexico, India, Thailand, and Mexico, as well as European destinations such as Germany, for affordable surgical procedures. Heart bypass surgery, a $113,000 investment in the U.S., costs $10,000 in India and $13,000 in Thailand.

Termed “medical tourism,” this industry is growing. Approximately 16 million Americans will travel abroad for treatment by 2017. This represents $373 billion that will be spent on medical procedures and accommodations on foreign soil. The World Health Organization indicates that procedures that are expensive in the U.S.—hip and knee replacements, back surgery and cosmetic work—are more affordable elsewhere.

The article describes existing medical tourism programs, including German Surgery, an organization that matches patients’ needs to physicians and hospitals that can meet them. This medical concierge service also works with insurers. Frank Rothmaier, general manager of the Munich-based company that owns German Surgery, estimates that a total hip replacement costs 30% to 60% less in Germany than in the US.   Some US health insurers have initiated medical tourism programs for members who enrolled self-funded health plans. Their rationale is that despite airfare and accommodations, savings can be large. Note that the website medicaltourism.com reports that 458 hospitals around the world are Joint Commission International accredited; accreditation is one factor patients desire when they travel to have surgery. This web site advises patients considering traveling for care to select a travel companion carefully. They also note that 70% of patients rate their care as excellent .

source: http://www.hcplive.com / MD> News / by Jeannette Y. Wick, Rph, MBA, FASCP / March 11th, 2015