Medical Tourism News
Malaysia postpones first
major health tourism
campaign
Malaysia Year of Healthcare Travel 2020 put on ice in
wake of pandemic
M
Domestic tourism
picking up in China
Medical tourism to benefit from COVID-19 recovery
C
hina is showing early signs of recovery after most of the country
was shut down following the outbreak of the COVID-19 virus in
Wuhan, as people start to travel again within the country.
According to Shiji Group, which has been sharing data across its
70-plus companies in the hotel, retail, food service, and entertainment
industries, reservations for domestic flights and hotels are on the rise,
with domestic health tourism in particular likely to grow.
Shiji found that hotel bookings have been recovering, starting with a
40 percent surge at the beginning of the month. Demand for domestic
flights, meanwhile, soared 230 percent from the lowest level recorded
in February.
The overall hotel operating rate in major cities across the country is
projected to have reached 90 percent by the end of March, Shiji found.
Among China’s tourist cities, Sanya, on Hainan Island, recorded
the fastest recovery rate as facilities begin to open up. The resort city
had been ramping up its ambitions to become a medical tourism hub
before the COVID-19 outbreak.
Last year, it unveiled a plan to increase health arrivals, with a focus
on medical treatment, medical cosmetology, rehabilitation, and health
promotion.
Under the plan, Hainan will tap into its coastal areas, tropical
rain forests, and hot springs to develop a high-end medical tourism
system.
Projects will target cancer treatment and rehabilitation, fertility
therapy, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease treatment, and
rehabilitation. Environmental healing, traditional Chinese medicine, and
spiritual retreats will also feature.
In 10 years, Hainan’s governor projects that the island will become
one of China’s leading medical tourism destinations, with annual
revenues reaching US$5.8 billion.
62
MAY 2020
alaysia has decided to defer a yearlong health
tourism promotion campaign in light of the
disruption to its healthcare system caused by the
COVID-19 pandemic.
The Malaysia Healthcare Travel Council, the
government agency spearheading efforts to boost
medical arrivals, will put the Malaysia Year of
Healthcare Travel 2020 campaign on ice.
This is Malaysia’s first major international medical
tourism campaign set out to promote Malaysian
hospitals, clinics, and wellness centres in tandem
with a broader tourism campaign.
Organised in tandem with Visit Malaysia 2020, the
medical tourism campaign would have targeted new
markets in Southeast Asia and the Middle East to
encourage more medical tourists.
“With an optimistic outlook, we hope to resume
the Malaysia Year of Healthcare Travel campaign
in 2021. This deferment paves way for the current
needs of the nation’s healthcare industry to contain
and subsequently eradicate the virus,” the council
said in a statement. “During this challenging time,
we will continue showcasing Malaysia healthcare’s
capabilities and strengths as a world-class quality
healthcare provider.”
Its work will involve preparations to help the
healthcare industry rebound in the wake of the
COVID-19 crisis through initiatives to develop the
Malaysian healthcare brand in target markets.
Before the crisis, Malaysia was expecting
2.8 billion ringgit (US$650m) in medical tourism
revenues this year. Indonesians make up about 60
percent of health tourists in Malaysia, followed by
Chinese and Middle Eastern visitors.
GlobalHealthAndTravel.com