KUALA
LUMPUR, July 7 — Malaysia's multi-million medical tourism industry is expected
to fuel the rise of healthcare hubs in Johor, Penang and Malacca, a research
report said today.
BMI
Research said this trend will also be supported by both the government's
efforts to turn the industry into a key economic growth driver as well as
private healthcare providers' business strategy of tapping into such
opportunities.
"As
Malaysia's medical tourism sector matures, the country will see the rise of
core geographic centres focused on the industry," the research firm said
in its outlook for Malaysia’s medical sector and medical tourism.
While it
noted that private healthcare providers have long been gathering at key
locations in Malaysia, BMI Research said this trend has been reinforced by the
government's announcement last month to set up a medical hub in Johor's
Iskandar Malaysia.
"We
highlight that beyond Johor, other locations identified by the government as
potential medical tourism hubs include Penang and Melaka," it added.
Private
healthcare providers KPJ Healthcare and IHH Healthcare are expected to benefit
from the government's plans to turn these three areas into medical tourism
hubs, BMI Research said.
The
report also said KPJ Healthcare had in its annual report last year earmarked
four of its hospitals to cater for medical tourists, noting that two of these —
KPJ Johor and KPJ Penang — are located in the potential medical hubs.
The
report also noted that IHH Healthcare, which has hospitals in all three
locations, had previously said it wants to increase the proportion of its
revenue derived from medical tourists — 10 per cent in 2015 — over the next
five to 10 years.
BMI
Research said multinational pharmaceutical firms may shift their sales
strategies with the rise of Malaysia's medical tourism hubs, noting that
international patients have on average been found to spend 20 per cent more
than locals on healthcare.
Citing
Malaysia Healthcare Travel Council's (MHTC) data, BMI Research said however
that the Malaysian government may face challenges in meeting its “ambitious”
target this year of RM1.3 billion in revenue from the medical tourism industry.
It noted
that Malaysia's medical tourism industry had a strong annual revenue growth of
16 per cent from a reported RM900 million last year compared to RM777 million
in 2014, but highlighted that MHTC showed a four per cent dip in annual number
of medical tourists last year.
"This
suggests that 2015's revenue growth came solely from higher spending per
international patient," the report said.
BMI
Research also said that it believes Malaysia will seek to differentiate itself
from competitors by integrating its healthcare offerings into its tourism
industry, noting the need for Asian medical tourism hubs to stand out amid the
rise of South Korea and India.
It
pointed out a 2013 study in Thailand where 43 per cent of medical tourists
surveyed placed an equal importance on both having a holiday in the country and
receiving medical treatment.
"To
that end, Penang and Melaka in particular are well positioned given their
position as key tourism destinations within Malaysia," the report said.
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