Pandemic provides catalyst for wider adoption of telemedicine
Healthcare providers have been forced to find new ways to care in world of lockdowns and restrictions
As in many other industries that have been embracing the so-called Industrial Revolution 4.0 , the medical industry has charted a path to everincreasing digitisation over the last decade
It ’ s a sad irony of the current pandemic that the industry leading the fight against it has also found itself one of its major victims . While public healthcare sectors around the world can rely on their governments to offset the growing strain on their services , the private medical sector has been suffering like most other for-profit enterprises .
Travel restrictions and social distancing measures have caused patient numbers to plummet , especially among hospitals that treat medical tourists . Concern among patients over the wisdom of entering facilities perceived to be viral hot zones has led many to put off visiting their doctors until a COVID-19 vaccine is developed , often with detrimental consequences .
Before the coronavirus outbreak , many countries had looked to medical tourism to help spur their economies . Malaysian healthcare and its medical travel subsector , for example , had been enjoying sustained and robust growth , as had other Asian countries such as India , Thailand , Taiwan , South Korea , and Singapore .
Malaysia had been named one of the top performing countries for healthcare travel in the Asia- Pacific , with the Global Market Report 2018 ranking it as the world ’ s top destination by volume , surpassing countries such as America , South Korea , and other big names .
In a 10-year assessment of Malaysia ’ s healthcare travel industry up to 2019 , the Malaysian agency charged with attracting patients from abroad reported an average of nine percent growth in healthcare revenues and a 15 percent rise in tourist arrivals annually .
“ Malaysia ’ s healthcare industry grew at a CAGR [ compound annual growth rate ] of 17 percent between 2015 to 2019 , against the Asia-Pacific year-on-year growth of 12 to14 percent , showcasing the potential healthcare travel holds for the region ,” said Sherene Azli , chief executive of the Malaysia Healthcare Travel Council ( MHTC ), in an interview with BizHive . “ Our commitment to customer centricity has built trust among multinational healthcare travellers , resulting in a 22 percent revenue increase of RM 1.7 billion in hospital receipts in 2019 , which contributed a total economic impact of RM 6.6 billion .”
But as they love to say in the investment world , past performance is no guarantee of future results . As COVID-19 spread globally , hopes for another recordbreaking year were quickly dashed . The three-time International Medical Travel Journal Destination of the Year winner saw its medical tourism fortunes reverse overnight , as did other regional rivals .
“ We expect the healthcare travel market to be smaller in 2020 and 2021 ; for 2020 , we have a revenue target of RM500 million by the end of the year , which is 70 to 75 percent less than in 2019 .
“ We don ’ t have a clear picture of how many people are coming because this is a totally new environment . The travelling behaviour is different , and there are changes in the way we do things ,” Sherene told Bernama .
Malaysia and its regional competitors are not alone . At the height of the pandemic , the United Nations World Tourism Organisation ( UNWTO ) predicted a 60- 80 percent global decline in tourist arrivals by the end of 2020 , depending on when borders reopened and travel restrictions lifted .
As in previous industry shakeups , Darwin ’ s principle of survival of the fittest will likely play out again here as the medical sector comes to terms with new realities . As in most crises , the survivors will be those that are most able and willing to adapt to it .
Despite the current pain , one thing the private healthcare industry has going for it is that it ’ s packed with dynamic figures who have both the brainpower and the resources to refashion their operating environments in ways that can mitigate challenges outside their control .
It also helps that large-scale digitalisation , which has transformed the way healthcare operates , has been well underway at private hospitals throughout the Asia-Pacific .
As in many other industries that have been embracing the so-called Industrial Revolution 4.0 , the medical industry has charted a path to ever-increasing digitisation over the last decade .
And while not all technological innovations have made it into the mainstream of patient care , a good number , such as online consultations , record-keeping , and a wealth of other services enabled by cloud
44 NOVEMBER 2020 GlobalHealthAsiaPacific . com