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BUSINESS REVIEW
Medical Tourism
101
Cambodia
In 2011, the number of medical tourists
from Cambodia to Malaysia increased
by 34% to 1,170 medical tourists in
comparison to the preceding year.
These patients mainly sought treatment in
areas relating to cardiology, orthopaedics,
gastroenterology, health screening, cosmetic
surgery, ENT, and neurology as well
as digestive and respiratory care. The
increase in patient numbers underscores
the fact that Cambodians are expressing
an increasing confidence in the services
offered by Malaysian healthcare providers.
KPJ continued to explore the potential of
the Cambodian market in 2012 through
its participation in the MHTC’s Malaysia
Healthcare Exhibition 2012 held in
conjunction with MATRADE’s Showcase
Malaysia in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
Strong leads have emerged from this
event and we are exploring opportunities
with potential strategic partners to work
together.
The Middle East
The Middle East market promises
strong growth potential. Given the many
similarities in culture and customs between
Malaysia and the region, as well as our
experience in managing hospitals in Saudi
Arabia, KPJ is strongly positioned to attract
medical tourists from the Middle East. The
year saw us undertaking several marketing
activities locally and abroad which led to
a rise in patient numbers from the Middle
East as well as a hike in related medical
tourism revenue.
On the home front, we organised the KPJ
Malaysia-Arab Community Day 2012
at KPJ Tawakkal Specialist Hospital to
demonstrate the Group’s appreciation
to the Arab community who have been a
great support and an important customer
segment these last many years. Aside from
being an effective platform to showcase
KPJ’s and our consultants’ capabilities,
the event was an opportune platform to
highlight the differences and similarities
between the cultures, build goodwill, as
well as strengthen ties. The two-day event
saw several activities being carried out,
among which were various health talks,
screenings and tests, consultations as well
as cultural performances.
As part of our efforts to strengthen our
relationships with local governments and
business establishments in the Middle
East region, we continued to undertake
sales visits and tie-ups with medical
tourism agents in 2012 in addition to the
HT Expo and conferences we participated
in with the MHTC, MATRADE and Tourism
Malaysia. An agents was appointed to
source patients from the Middle East. Our
use of social media platforms to promote
various packages and announcement
related to KPJ has proven to be effective,
with our postings eliciting good response
from Middle Eastern residents based in
Malaysia.
Iran
We also continue to strengthen our efforts
to tap the medical tourism potential of
the Iranian market. In 2012, medical
tourist numbers from Iran rose by 15%
in comparison to 2011’s numbers, while
revenue rose by a commendable 48%.
Iranians now rank 7th place on the Health
Tourism Chart.
Annual Report
2012
KPJ Healthcare Berhad
KPJ Group Senior General Manager of Marketing
and Corporate Communication, Rafeah Ariffin at the
launching of Malaysia Expo and Healthcare Seminar by
the Health Minister of Malaysia, Y.B. Dato Sri Liow Tiong
Lai in Yangon, Myanmar.
Visitors from Middle East posing for a group photo at KPJ Tawakkal Specialist Hospital.