SINGAPORE AS A MEDICAL HUB

SINGAPORE AS A MEDICAL HUB: 14.

Dr Lily Neo asked the Minister for Health (a) what is the progress on efforts to promote Singapore as a medical hub; (b) what are the Ministry’s successes in targeting more foreign patients from non-traditional sources, such as the Middle East; and (c) how is Singapore faring in comparison to Thailand’s Bumrungrad International Hospital.

Mr Khaw Boon Wan: Dr Lily Neo asked about our progress to promote Singapore as a medical hub. We are making some progress. Over the last three years, foreign patient arrivals have grown at an average rate of 20% per annum.

Last year, nearly 400,000 foreign patients came here for treatment. Our target is to attract one million foreign patients by 2012.

We expect the medical travel market to continue to expand as the middle class grows. The competition to be medical hubs will at the same time intensify. Dr Lily Neo mentioned Bangkok’s Bumrungrad Hospital which was reported to have served about 400,000 foreign

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patients per year. But there are many more such competitors in Thailand, Malaysia and India. In due course, I am sure China too will move into this sector.

Currently, patients from ASEAN countries account for about 70% of our international inpatient volume. We have begun to reach out to non-ASEAN countries, with encouraging results. There is a growing trend in patients arriving from further afield, including Russia, Bangladesh and the Middle East. These are new markets with significant potential.

To tap these opportunities, we need to increase our capacity, especially in manpower and hospital beds. We also need to raise our clinical capabilities and service standards so as to justify our higher cost premium. We will continue to push these efforts, without undermining the services to our local patients.

Dr Lily Neo: May I ask the Minister how does he reassure Singaporeans on the concern of compromising care for the locals with the increasing number of medical tourists?

Mr Khaw Boon Wan: I can reassure with action rather than words and really the key strategy is to expand capacity. Because if you do not keep on training and recruiting many more doctors and nurses, then, inevitably, as we are not closing our borders, we cannot stop foreign patients from coming in and, services will be affected. So the key is to continue to expand our doctors and nurses. And capacity as well, in terms of physical beds. Right now, I really see a need for at least one or two private hospitals to come up, and I am working very closely with URA to release land for this purpose.

Mr Speaker: **** Order. End of Question time.

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[ Pursuant to Standing Order No. 22(3), Written Answers to Question Nos. 16, 18, 20, 22-25, 27-29 and 31 on the Order Paper are reproduced in the Appendix*. Question Nos. 15, 17, 19, 21, 26 and 30 have been postponed to the sitting of Parliament on 23rd January 2007. ]

*Cols. 1067-1084.

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