Panel discussion
act as a digital front door to the entire healthcare options available in Malaysia for overseas patients ( medical directory , packages , live chats ), making it easier for healthcare travellers to select the most suitable doctors and treatments . Similarly , an online platform allows international patients to easily apply for and extend medical visas .
Responsible healthcare Dr Low explained how healthcare providers could do their part to mitigate the environmental catastrophe we are going through , which is also the biggest health crisis of our time , and be more socially responsible . For example , he pointed out that the National University Hospital in Singapore collaborated with local firms to recycle intravenous ( IV ) fluid bags , with 80 kg of PVC from them being collected and recycled .
Farrer Park Hospital has also environmental sustainability at its core . Indeed , the ultramodern facility is a green building with eco-friendly energy and water management systems . For example , motion detectors to turn lights off when they aren ’ t needed helped cut energy consumption by 30 percent annually .
The hospital ’ s management has also made efforts to address the needs of the staff , adjusting shift timings for nurses to improve their work-life balance .
Best clinics of the year The gala night saw more than 90 clinics receive awards for the quality of their services in a wide range of categories .
In cancer care , ARC Hospitals , OncoCare Cancer
Centre , and Parkway Cancer Centre were crowned Oncology Medical Centre of the Year in Asia-Pacific . Esperance Integrative Cancer Center was named Integrated Cancer Medical Centre of the Year in Asia- Pacific .
In cardiology , Capital Heart Centre received the Cardiology Medical Centre of the Year in Asia-Pacific Award , while The Cardiology Practice obtained the Interventional Cardiology Medical Centre of the Year in Asia-Pacific .
Two more specific award categories are worth mentioning — Long Covid Centre of Excellence in Asia-Pacific and Endometriosis Service Provider of the Year in Asia-Pacific , which were given to Miskawaan Health Group and Dr Sharifah Clinic for Women and Laparoscopic Surgery .
Long COVID is a potentially debilitating long-term condition affecting some of those who got infected with COVID-19 . Though most patients can recover after treatment , some people are plagued by serious symptoms like extreme fatigue for years , which makes it hard to go about one ’ s business . Improved treatment for this minority of patients is urgently needed .
Similarly , endometriosis is a potentially debilitating condition where tissue in the womb grows outside of it . It can cause severe pain and makes it hard for women to get pregnant . Nonetheless , it ’ s been long neglected and underdiagnosed mostly due to cultural misconceptions around female pain .
We at Global Health Asia-Pacific hope that these awards will contribute to raising awareness of both conditions .
GlobalHealthAsiaPacific . com ISSUE 3 | 2023
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