Integrating "medical tourism"

When hospitals do tourism

During her trip, Ms. Brenda Eleanor Ingram (Australian) unfortunately had an unexpected accident. She was taken to Vinh Duc General Hospital, where doctors diagnosed her with a complex fracture of her right femur as well as many other diseases related to the lungs, heart, and metabolic disorders. After that, this tourist underwent surgery right at the hospital.

Ms. Brenda Eleanor Ingram said that this was probably an unforgettable experience in Vietnam. And this is also one of many foreign patients treated and cared for at Vinh Duc General Hospital.

Recently, Vinh Duc General Hospital was licensed by the Department of Health as a qualified unit to conduct health examinations for foreigners in the province.

To achieve this recognition, in 2020, Vinh Duc General Hospital established an International Treatment Unit with the goal of providing health care according to international standards, suitable for tourists as well as foreign experts working in Vietnam.

From the story of receiving, treating and taking care of international guests, this unit has gradually approached the trend of combining development between the medical and tourism fields.

Not only becoming a familiar name in the foreign community in the Central region, Vinh Duc General Hospital is continuously chosen as the medical care unit for international cultural and artistic events held in Quang Nam . This is an opportunity for the hospital brand to once again be recognized by foreigners.

Mr. Tran Cong An - Director of Vinh Duc General Hospital said that to become a trusted address for foreigners, in addition to meeting international standards, the hospital has connected and approached foreign tourists through different channels and from the feedback of international patients, it has created a bridge for the unit to welcome more tourists to Vietnam for tourism and work.

“We have boldly taken the lead, proactively building medical examination and treatment procedures specifically for foreign guests. In addition, we also offer separate service packages with specific prices to facilitate foreign tourists and travel agencies,” said Mr. Tran Cong An.

A representative of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism said that in recent years, tourism products associated with health care have begun to receive investment and exploitation in Quang Nam and create a highlight for tourists. From activities in Tak Ngo ginseng garden and some ginseng gardens in Nam Tra My to health recovery activities, herbal foot baths, physical therapy, meditation, yoga... in Hoi An and coastal accommodation facilities...

Unlocking Potential

Vietnam is considered to have many favorable conditions, but medical tourism is still in its potential form. Travel companies have not boldly organized medical treatment tours for domestic and international customers to Vietnam, but mainly do the opposite, sending Vietnamese people abroad for medical treatment at high costs.

Developing tourism combined with the strengths of traditional medicine is being promoted by Quang Nam.

However, since the COVID-19 pandemic, many medical tourism models have been professionally developed in many localities. Currently, Ho Chi Minh City has built 30 combo tour programs combining medical tourism and health care suitable for domestic and international tourist markets. Ho Chi Minh City also organizes promotions for medical tourism products with a "Medical Tourism Handbook" in 6 languages for tourists.

In Quang Nam, experts say the potential for breakthrough development of medical tourism is huge. From natural resources to natural health care products, medical infrastructure, human resources, however, "medical tourism" has not been promoted yet.

To approach this development trend of “healing tourism”, in May, the Provincial People's Committee issued a plan to implement the Project on developing traditional medicine and pharmaceutical services and products for tourists by 2030 in Quang Nam province.

Accordingly, many mechanisms and policies related to the development of YDCT services and products for tourists will be completed to make YDCT a mainstream tourism product line. From health care tourism, aesthetic tourism, medicinal tourism, discovery tourism to academic tourism are all based on the strengths of YDCT.

The combination of the Quang Nam health sector and the identification of medical tourism development is one of the solutions to improve service quality and modernize medical examination and treatment processes in the area.

The representative of the Department of Health said that in order for medical tourism to develop, the tourism industry, in addition to building a promotion strategy, needs to strengthen the connection between tourists, hotels, and resorts with facilities that provide medical tourism services to ensure the provision of services combining health care and tourism.

In the long term, a medical tourism call center to receive calls, coordinate, and meet tourists' needs for health check-ups, medical treatment, etc. should also be considered.

Source: https://baoquangnam.vn/hoi-nhap-du-lich-y-te-3139360.html