The Hindu Business Line : Call to promote medical tourism in Visakhapatnam

Visakhapatnam March 18 There is a great potential for attracting patients from abroad and promoting healthcare tourism in the country in general and in places such as Vizag in particular in the next decade or so, according to Dr G. Vivekanand, the Managing Director of Visakha Industries and the chairman of the AP zone of the Confederation of Indian Industry.

At the inaugural session of a one-day seminar on healthcare industry organised by the CII here on Saturday, he said a joint study by the CII and McKinsey had shown that medical tourism, currently pegged at $350 million, would grow into a $2 billion industry by 2012.

Healthcare spending was projected to double in the country in the next decade.

He said it was not only the cost advantage keeping the sector ticking in India, but the quality of services as well. Therefore, it was high time both the Government and the private sector joined hands to promote medical tourism, he pleaded.

Presently, he said, India was on a par with Singapore, attracting roughly 1.5 lakh medical tourists a year, and the annual growth rate was 30 per cent.

Dr B. Soma Raju, the Chairman and Managing Director, Care Hospitals, said that it was not enough there was the cost advantage, quality medical services should be provided to the patients. Unethical practices should be curbed.

Mr G. Ashok Kumar, the project director of the AP State AIDS Control Society, said the image of AP should be improved by curbing the incidence of HIV/AIDS to the extent possible and in particular the State Government was concentrating on prevention of transmission of the virus from the mother to the child. He sought the co-operation of corporate hospitals, and other private hospitals, in the endeavour.

Mr H.S. Chhatwal, the Director, Commercial, of the Visakhapatnam steel plant and the chairman of the Vizag zone of the CII, and Dr Varma Vagesna, the MD of Lazarus Hospitals and the vice-chairman of the Vizag zone, also spoke.

Ms Shobana Kamineni, the director of Apollo Hospitals Group, also spoke.

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