MALAYSIA has always been an attractive destination for medical tourism.
In 2018 alone, the industry drew a revenue of RM1.5 billion from over 1.2 million medical tourist arrivals, according to the Malaysia Healthcare Chronicles industry report 2009-2019.
Malaysia's ability to offer affordable world-class healthcare services is its main draw.
This, coupled with well-trained healthcare workers and the fact that many Malaysians are multilingual, has made the country an attractive destination for medical tourism in the region.
But how has the Covid-19 pandemic affected this industry?
The Malaysia Healthcare Travel Council (MHTC) estimates that there has been a 75 per cent drop in medical tourism for Malaysia due to the pandemic.
Mahkota Medical Centre chief executive officer Stanley Lam says we must keep in mind that Covid-19 is an unprecedented event.
Private hospitals actively involved in medical tourism have been severely impacted by the closure of the country's borders.
To counter this, Mahkota Medical Centre has initiated various online or digital health activities to maintain a connection to its foreign patients.
The hospital has 14 authorised offices in Indonesia and these facilities have been used to coordinate digital health talks for Indonesian patients.
It also has teleconsultation services to ensure minimal interruption in provision of care to foreign patients.
In addition, it is providing medication delivery services to international patients who are not able to secure their medication in their home countries.
All this is aimed at ensuring the hospital remains connected to its foreign customer base.
However, Lam says not all patients like teleconsultations. Some prefer to physically see the doctor. Ultimately, there may be some patients who will turn to doctors in their home country given the current situation.
"For us, Indonesians form the largest group of foreign patients. About 30 per cent of our patients are from foreign countries and of this number, more than 95 per cent are Indonesians."
Patients also come from Cambodia, Vietnam and Singapore. These patients seek a variety of services, from health screening and surgical procedures to oncology treatment.
Lam says foreign patients find Malaysia to be an attractive healthcare destination because our healthcare system is very affordable.
For Indonesians, for example, medical treatment in their home country can be costlier than in Malaysia, he adds.
"Our specialist care in particular offers value for money. Because of our proximity to Indonesia, the fact that we speak a common language and given that Malaysia is a Muslim country, they feel comfortable coming here."
They can move around, understand the language and, most importantly, they have confidence in our healthcare system, adds Lam.
BOOSTING THE ECONOMY
When foreign patients come for treatment here, they don't come alone.
Lam says they are usually accompanied by three to four people and the duration of their stay in Malaysia can be a week or more if the patient is undergoing cancer or fertility treatment.
The companions or family members who accompany these patients usually reside in local hotels during their stay as well as shop and dine out regularly, so medical tourism has a ripple effect on other sectors as well.
Lam says this is why it's important to ensure that medical tourism in Malaysia continues to thrive because it helps boost other industries and will help our economy to bounce back quicker, especially for hoteliers.
The situation post-Covid-19 is hard to predict, he explains, adding that it is difficult to determine when the medical tourism industry will be back on its feet again.
"This is a huge phenomenon and right now, no one knows what the situation will be like post-Covid-19. Furthermore, in our neighbouring countries, the Covid-19 situation is still not improving."
Lam says it will take time for the situation to stabilise and go back to normal. Hopefully, the industry as a whole will hopefully show an improvement in the right direction by the end of next year, he adds.
Even then, one cannot guarantee that patients will return in large numbers. That remains to be seen.
Given the situation, Lam hopes the government will extend the necessary support and incentives to help the medical tourism industry bounce back.
"Covid-19 has been an extremely painful experience for many and caused undue stress. We need to come together to support one another during this time."
TRAVEL BUBBLE
ON June 30, the government gave the green light for a medical travel bubble beginning July 1 but subject to stringent standard operating procedures (SOPs).
This decision was made following a three-month-long process of developing SOPs that would protect the nation, its frontliners as well as incoming patients from abroad.