Malaysia promotes healthcare travel with a bang in China

Borneopost: NANNING: Malaysia has gone into promoting healthcare travel with a bang in China, a market with about a 1.4 billion population.
Malaysia Healthcare Travel Council (MHTC) Deputy chief executive officer Wong Toon Keng said the campaign was launched in Hong Kong by Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai two months ago.
“Hong Kong was selected because it’s a trend-setter,” he said at the ongoing 8th China-Asean Expo (CAEXPO 2011) here.
Last week, he said, MHTC chief executive officer Dr Mary Wong Lai Lin attended a forum in Shanghai, where she spoke on the Malaysian healthcare travel industry.
The MHTC has also received approval to bring media practitioners from five Chinese provinces to visit the various healthcare facilities in Malaysia next month.
The main objective of the publicity drive is create awareness among the Chinese public, as the number of healthcare travelers from China to Malaysia, has not seen a significant increase over the years, Wong said.
“Malaysia is a late starter, unlike Singapore.
“At present, about 70 per cent of healthcare travelers in Malaysia are Indonesians, with their main destinations being Penang and Melaka,” he added.
For the six-day CAEXPO 2011 that ends on Wednesday, the MHTC has a cluster alongside KPJ Healthcare Bhd (KPJ) and Sunway Medical Centre Bhd (Sunway), in the Malaysia Pavilion hosted by the Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (Matrade).
“We have received a lot of enquiries,” Wong said.
The MHTC was established under the Health Ministry in 2009 as the primary agency to develop and promote the healthcare travel industry.
It also serves to position Malaysia as the healthcare destination of choice in the region.
On October 8 this year, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak announced in his 2012 Budget speech that the Council would be corporatised.