Wednesday, February 14, 2007 Medical tourism: A new niche for the city By Joy Romares-Sevilla
WHO would ever refuse to have a treatment in a hospital where rooms are like those in a first-class hotel in a big city like Davao?
Health services, for all its woes in the Philippines, remain to be cheap despite updated trainings by the medical professionals here. If you think going to the topnotch dentist here is expensive, then try checking out how much that visit will cost had you been abroad.
Dominador Cabrera, President of the Davao Doctors Hospital, which recently applied for an accreditation for medical tourism from the regional office of the Department of Tourism (DOT), said these types of hospitals have to pass certain requirements, thus, the accreditation.
"Davao Doctors has applied to be able to participate in medical tourism, it is an advantage because people in other countries will be coming here to have their treatment since the cost is cheaper compared from where they are from, they will pay cheaper than what they will pay in the United States," Cabrera said in an interview.
Cabrera said countries in the Far East -- Thailand, Singapore, Korea, India, and Japan, are also offering medical tourism at present.
To be able to compete, Davao Doctors had to renovate all its rooms. He said that the Department of Tourism inspected their hospital last week and gave them advise on what needs to be done to be accredited. The verdict: renovation of all rooms to make it like a tourism facility.
"As soon as the construction of our new building will be finished, that is in the middle of April or May, we will start with the renovation," Cabrera added.
Medical facility-wise, they are at par. He said the hospital has the most complete facilities now in Mindanao. In fact, it has the latest 64-slice CT scan, which costs over P30 million.
"We also have a laboratory that enables us to do open heart surgery, we have the 64-slice CT scan which was only present in at least three hospitals in the country," Cabrera said.
While the city hopes to take on this market niche, Cabrera admits, it's still too early to claim the city already has that advantage.
"We're making it ready for medical tourism, as of now, we're not yet very much ready," he said adding that a hospital should also have a lot of connection and tie-up with different resorts, golf clubs and other recreational centers to attract tourists to come for a treatment, at the same time, vacation.
Once it's all set, however, he believes this will entice medical professionals -- doctors, nurses, and even caregivers -- to stay in the country.
"Because they will still earn better if they will work abroad, medical services here cheaper than abroad," he said.
DOT Secretary Mina Gabor in 1998 initiated the establishment of the Philippine Medical Tourism Program (PMTP) that aims to position the country as a premier health holiday destination in Southeast Asia.
It also aims to contribute to foreign exchange earnings; contribute to regional development in terms of employment generation and increase in local government revenue; increase investments relative to health activities; and promote and develop the country's thermal springs and other resources for medical tourism projects.
