KUALA LUMPUR: The Health Ministry yesterday launched a “Malaysia Healthcare” logo and website as part of a concerted effort to promote medical tourism in the country.

Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai, who launched the branding exercise, said the logo with its tagline “Quality care for peace of mind” was among collaborative efforts between the government and the private sector.

“The website (www.myhealthcare.gov.my) will serve as a gateway for potential patients and visitors to explore what the Malaysian healthcare services sector has to offer in terms of medical treatment options, and state-of-the-art health and medical facilities, as well as general information on Malaysia,” he said.

Thirty-fi ve private hospitals in the country have been identified to promote the healthcare travel programme, Liow said, adding that the government hoped more hospitals and dental clinics would participate.

He said the ministry would propose to the cabinet the establishment of a healthcare travel council which would work with the Economic Planning Unit, relevant government agencies and the Association of Private Hospitals of Malaysia to shore up the industry by consolidating the strengths of government and private hospitals.

.“We hope that such a platform will improve the quality of our medical practitioners and increase the space to unearth their potential.

“When the industry is gradually developed, we will be able to attract top medical practitioners from overseas, and this will be good for the healthcare industry.”

Earlier, Liow said the number of foreign patients in Malaysia had increased almost ten-fold from 39,114 in 1998 to 374,063 last year, and revenue generated from their hospital bills had risen from RM14.1 million to RM299 million in the same period – a compound growth rate of 35.7%.

He said statistics indicate that the healthcare services industry has the potential to become a new source of income that can be tapped and expanded.

“The multiplier effect of health tourism would be a boost for other tourism-related industries such as hotel and transportation because foreign patients with accompanying family and friends would also use these services.

“All these would translate into an increase in foreign exchange which bodes well for the Malaysian economy.”

-- By : Giam Say Khoon