The Hindu Business Line : Kochi gets set for health tourism meet

Kochi March 19 Around 800 delegates from India and abroad, representing various stakeholders of the healthcare sector, are expected to attend the four-day Kerala Health Tourism 2007 at Kochi, on March 23-27.

The event is to be inaugurated by the Union Minister for Tourism, Ms Ambika Soni. The Kerala Minister for Tourism, Mr Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, will preside over the function.

Mr A.K. Misra, Secretary to the Union Ministry of Tourism, and other senior Central and State Government officials are expected to participate in the event to be hosted by CII and Kerala Tourism.

Addressing a press conference, Dr Phillip Augustine, Managing Director of Lakeshore Hospital and Research Centre, said that the State Government had extended all cooperation in organising the event, the only such meet in the country. Unlike Kerala Health Tourism 2006, the event this year will include pavilions and participation from dental and ayurveda companies, apart from mainstream hospitals and healthcare. Representatives from several foreign insurance companies are also expected to participate.

Important delegates from abroad include Dr Peter Morley, International Medical Director, Bumrungrad Hospital Thailand; Mr Robert Davison, Editor of The Capital, UK; Mr Mark Scott, Global Health Tours, UK; Dr Dennis Sebastian, Arab Insurance Company, UAE; and Mr Venu Menon, Oceanic Healthplus, UAE. Business visitors from UK, USA, Canada, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Dubai, Muscat, Abu Dhabi and Kuwait have confirmed their participation.

For better standards

Mr P.V. Antony, Managing Director of Medical Trust Hospital, said that the standard of medical care would improve for foreign tourists and they would get far more cost-effective treatment for the money they spend. For the local customers, the quality of the medical care and facilities would graduate into global standards.

Like in the case of tourism, the Government should strive for a private-public partnership so as to market Kerala as a brand destination for medical tourism, Mr Sudhakar Jayaram, General Manager of Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences and Research Centres pointed out. In a bid to contain their expenditure, several foreign insurance companies have already begun promoting Kerala as a health tourism destination.

Dr Anil Kumar, Managing Director of Kerala Ayurveda Pharmacy welcomed the inclusion of ayurveda as a specific discipline in the tourism meet. He said that ayurveda consists of rejuvenation and recuperative therapies. While the former has been the major focus of health tourism, the curative part is equally important and needed equal focus.

Visitor draw

Dr C. Rajkrishnan, CEO of Dr Rajkrishnan's Dental Clinic, pointed out that dental treatment and ophthalmic care can be planned well ahead and synchronised seamlessly into the tourist itinerary of a visitor. Health tourism has grown by 30 per cent during the last year. He said that the dental hospitals in the State should emulate Hungary, which is a world leader in dental health tourism, attracting visitors from US, UK and other European countries.

Earlier health tourists to the State were confined to Maldives and the Gulf countries. That list has now expanded to include UK, USA, Canada and other European countries, Dr Augustine said. Visitors from African countries have also recently been coming to hospitals in Kerala and we have been getting fresh enquiries from Russia. In order to attain higher standards of health care, several hospitals from the State have applied to the National Accreditation Board for Hospitals, the quality control agency of the Government.

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