Mack Banner, Bumrungrad International

This issue's SPOTLIGHT features a conversation between Laura Carabello, publisher and managing editor of Medical Travel Today, and Mack Banner, CEO, Bumrungrad International, Bangkok.

Medical Travel Today (MTT):  How would you characterize the market for U.S. medical travelers accessing care at Bumrungrad?

Mack Banner (MB): Bumrungrad became a pioneer in the U.S. medical travel market following the opening of our current large facility in 1997. Over the past 11 years the number of U.S. patients seen in our hospital has steadily grown.  Last year, of the more than 425,000 international patients (almost 1,200 international patients per day) we served, approximately 62,000 from the United States. Of those 62,000 Americans about 50 percent actually got on a plane and came from the United States, and the other half were U.S. expatriates living in the region.  We are now considered one of the anchor international hospitals by those who are in the business of medical travel due to our size, quality, and the scope of services we offer, as well as the reputation we’ve earned caring for international patients over the years.

Bumrungrad is a private sector hospital, with 554 licensed beds and 190 outpatient clinics seeing approximately 3,000 patients every day – 40 percent of these are non-Thais, including medical travelers, resident expatriates, and individuals from surrounding countries. About 72 percent of patients fall into the self-pay category, with the rest being covered by their employer, insurance, or government agency contracts from around the world.  The current facility opened in 1997 and was the first of its kind worldwide:  a large-scale operation with impressive capabilities that triggers a real WOW reaction from first time patients and visitors.

MTT:  Please describe Bumrungrad’s rise in the international health care marketplace.

MB:  Back in 1997 during the Asian financial crisis, local demand for private health care services had dried up and forced management to look outside the immediate area for patient visits.  The silver lining to the Baht’s devaluation was that for those paying in U.S. currency we became half price overnight. Upper income patients from surrounding countries, including Cambodia and Bangladesh, also began utilizing the hospital in their quest for higher quality healthcare. During this time, our hospital began to emerge as one of the preferred private hospitals in Asia, a role formally held by the Mt. Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore.

After 9/11, patients from the Middle East found it increasingly difficult to get visas to travel to the United States and Europe, so they began utilizing our hospital. In 2001, we treated approximately 12,000 patients from the Middle East; this year we will provide services to more than 100,000 patients from there.  Today, for many patients from the Middle East we are their general hospital and a mainstream provider of care.  Of course, there is always competition, particularly as Dubai develops some impressive facilities and attracts some Middle Easterners to migrate back home.  Others are also trying to woo patients, including Bangkok General Hospital.  Singapore hospitals are attracting patients from Southeast Asia, Vietnam, and Cambodia while hospital companies from India are setting up hospitals Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.  We are no longer alone in this international marketplace – everyone has an interest.   

MTT:  Has the marketplace changed significantly over the past year?  Please describe.

MB:  Two major changes have occurred over the past few of years. First, medical Travel intermediaries, both real and virtual, have materialized along with medical travel associations. And sometimes it seems like there are even more medical travel conferences than patients! Secondly, global care options are now becoming available, with increasing numbers of insurance companies announcing plans to provide coverage for what we have termed the “global care option” as part of their mainstream health care plans in the United States.

MTT:  What are the key areas of medical excellence for Bumrungrad?   Has this changed in the past year or do you expect changes?

MB:  We are known for our extensive array of excellent subspecialty medicine services, with a distinctive reputation for heart, cancer, orthopedics, and other advanced specialties.  Our Centers of Excellence also attract Americans and others who are considered “accidental tourists:”  people who did not make the trip for healthcare, but decided they needed or wanted care when they arrived – say, because they got sick or had an accident. 

The serious medical travelers come for a specific procedure, driven by the cost savings.  A hip replacement that would run $50,000 in the United States costs $15,000 here.  While cost savings vary according to procedure, they are typically 30 to 70 percent below U.S. pricing.  The differentials are higher for more complex procedures. 

Clearly, the opportunity for savings is a major driver of the globalization of healthcare, with insurers and employers looking to waive deductibles and co-pays or pay for lodging to incentivize employees to take advantage of opportunities outside the United States.

MTT:  Why should Americans regard Bumrungrad as a preferred option for medical care?

MB: We have more than 1,000 doctors on our staff; more than 200 of these doctors are U.S. board certified. Many of them also serve as faculty members at one of three leading medical universities here in Bangkok. Our doctors cover all major specialties and, with their clinics all located here at our hospital, it is like having a very large multi-specialty group practice: a one-stop shop for almost any condition a patient might face. When necessary, patients can usually see multiple specialists, have all their diagnostic work-ups completed, and receive their outpatient treatments and medications in one day.
 
In 2002, we became the first hospital in Asia to achieve accreditation from the Joint Commission International (JCI)  and have been re-accredited twice.  This year, the JCI survey team used their newly updated standards and the tracer methodology; these surveys are now very similar to the extensive surveys conducted by JCI’s sister organization in the United States for accrediting hospitals there. 

Bumrungrad now has an extensive array of international patient support services including:

• An International Medical Coordination Office: a team of seven doctors and 20 nurses who cater to the special needs and requests of our non-Thai patients.
• A large e-mail management team that responds to 300 to 500 e-mail inquiries daily, typically with responses within 24 hours.
• Extensive English-speaking staff, complemented by more than 100 interpreters.
• Airport meet-and-greet services to guide patients  through immigration and arrange transport to their hotel; we have two hotels on campus and a wide variety of other hotels (at all price ranges) within easy walking distance.
• Concierge services; Wi-Fi throughout the hospital; rentable laptop computers.
• An extensive selection of international restaurants (including McDonald’s and Starbucks) on our campus.

We update our Web site (www.bumrungrad.com) constantly to provide our international patients with extensive information about our hospital, doctors, procedures, and programs  online. Last month we introduced a feature called REALCOST. This is a feature providing information on the actual costs our patients paid for 45 of our most popular procedures and examinations. These costs include all costs associated with the care, including all hospital,  medication,  procedure and room fees, doctor fees, and so on. We feel this program will become the world standard in providing cost information for patients. It addresses what we’ve seen from some hospitals that only provide  partial or “lowball” estimates in order to attract patients to their facilities.

A multi-national professional management team with American, British, Australian, Malaysian, and Singaporean executives complements our core Thai team of senior executives.

A state-of-the-art inpatient room at Bumrungrad

MTT:  What U.S. networks, health plans, or employers does Bumrungrad maintain relationships with for medical travel?

MB:  We have a pioneer agreement with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of South Carolina, which was signed last year, and we now have an agreement with Companion Global Care.  Overall, we have in place about ten specific agreements with eight different companies and their different subsidiaries, such as AIG, United, Cigna, and Blues plans.

We have working relationships with 15+ U.S. insurance companies and third party administrators.   We deal with many intermediaries – some with  actual offices, some with virtual or Internet-based locations.  In the United States we have no preferred medical travel partners and no  appointed agent, but we do  work with and are supportive of many of the groups now offering medical travel related services.  While formal agreements may not be in place, we are pretty flexible and have accepted their guarantees of payment on a case-by-case basis.

We receive a significant number of calls and e-mails and have more than 20 people responding to these requests.  The daily volume of inquiries ranges from 300 to several thousand when a story breaks in the media.

MTT:  Is JCI accreditation of importance and why?

MB: Of the many thousand international hospitals in the world, the JCI has now accredited about 197 institutions.  The JCI accreditation program is now the “gold standard” for measuring the quality of hospital operations throughout the world.  The JCI accreditation program is modeled after the U.S. Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO); in its own way, this is as rigorous an evaluation for an international hospital (in key clinical areas) as the JCAHO is for U.S. hospitals.

MTT:  Does Bumrungrad offer significantly lower costs for high quality medical care?

MB: YES!  As stated earlier, our costs will generally range from 30 to 70 percent less than U.S. hospital costs, depending on the type of procedure.  The cost savings generally are much more for the higher end, more complex procedures and the higher end diagnostic procedures.

Our Web site features REAL costs for surgical and diagnostic procedures, reflecting actual prices paid by patients during the past year for 45 of our most popular procedures and tests.  We want the cost of care to be totally transparent and expect that prospective patients will want to see what others have paid.  People need transparent, unvarnished data. Our average costs are a bit less than in Singapore and a bit more than in India.

However, a sometimes overlooked cost factor when considering care in a foreign country is the cost of the after-discharge lodging and food prior to flying home. This can normally be one to two weeks or more, depending on the complexity of the procedure. Earlier this year we went online to compare the cost of a week’s lodging and food – using  their best daily rate including breakfast and the cost of the lunch and dinner buffets at their coffee shops --  at the Marriott Hotel near our hospital against the Marriott Hotel in Singapore, which was located near one of our competitors.   We found the cost to be about $102 USD less per day to stay here in Bangkok than in Singapore. We then did a similar comparison with a Sheraton hotel in New Delhi and were surprised to find that the  hotel cost in India was about $200 USD per day higher than here in Bangkok.

MTT:  Does Bumrungrad offer any options for insurance (malpractice) coverage?

MB:  All of our physicians and our hospitals maintain full malpractice insurance coverage.  However, it is important for international patients to know and accept that any dispute regarding care or outcomes in an international hospital will be resolved in the jurisdiction (and country) of the hospital, not the home country of the patient.

Thailand has a professionally transparent legal system and patients have access to dispute resolution procedures available through the Thai Medical Council. Penalties for malpractice can include loss of license to practice; however, American patients should know that malpractice awards in Thailand are generally much lower than those awarded in the United States.

MTT:  Will Bumrungrad share its outcome data?

MB:  We routinely share our outcome data with insurance companies and other corporate organizations that make inquiries.

Bumrungrad has made the following recommendations for international hospitals regarding reporting of outcomes:

• Adopt ICD-10 and CPT Coding for all discharges and procedures
• Capture experience statistics for both hospital and key doctors for high profile procedures and diagnoses
• Capture 50 percent and 90 percent of costs on acuity-adjusted discharge data
• Develop and record condition specific clinical criteria for selected procedures and diagnoses
• Capture overall patient satisfaction rates by diagnosis
• Profile international patient handling infrastructure

MTT:  What is your vision for Bumrungrad regarding medical travel?

MB:  We are planning to more than double our clinical capacity in the next three years while significantly enhancing the personal experience for our international and local patients.

With the potential “tipping point” of insurance-sponsored patients taking advantage of the global care option, we are preparing for the potential of significant increases in higher acuity patients being served by our hospital. We are ready – but this “tipping point” hasn’t happened yet, and we’re not banking on it for 2009.

The economic meltdown that is now occurring should play in favor of medical travel.  It’s still a question of whether American patients will do nothing, opt for somewhat elective or discretionary procedures, or simply delay care.  Nobody knows the timeframe.

Today, people are worried about keeping their own jobs, and medical travel may be controversial.  We estimate that it takes about a year for an insurance company to make a decision regarding developing a global patient option insurance plan offering:  they first have to see the facility, then convince their boss that it is a quality destination, convince a committee, and then get their lawyers to review.  This is not an overnight process.

Also, we continue to expand our representative offices into new markets.  We are committed to being one of the most advanced hospitals in the world for the  coming decade in regards to information technology.

Last year, Microsoft purchased our hospital’s totally integrated hospital information system (HIS) from our sole-source vendor and entered into a long-term affiliation agreement to further develop this software in the coming years in collaboration with our Bumrungrad team. Our advanced capabilities will enable us to maintain state-of-the-art communication of medical data and records with both home country providers as well as electronic claims administration by international insurance companies.

MTT:  What is your perspective on the associations that are now getting organized for the industry?

MB: We belong to both the Medical Travel Association (MTA) and the International Medical Travel Association (IMTA).  Both these organizations play an emerging role in the further development of this whole field of medical travel and global care options. My view is that their value is similar to an industry-specific chamber of commerce: to serve as a clearing house of ideas, information, and innovations to enhance the professionalism of the sector as well as further the business objectives of its members and stakeholders.

About Mack Banner
With more than 34 years of multiple levels of operational and development responsibilities in both U.S. and international healthcare, Mack Banner has served  as CEO at Bumrungrad International, Bangkok, since July of 2005.  He holds a Master’s degree in hospital and health care administration from the Medical College of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University, where he was awarded the A.D. Williams Scholarship for Academic Excellence.  He attended the Marshall Wythe School of Law at William & Mary College and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in business management from Virginia Tech.  Banner has served multiple organizations and was vice-president and board member, American Malaysian Chamber of Commerce; board member, American Association of Malaysia; board member, Association of Private Hospitals of Malaysia; chairman, Board of Trust (24-hour crisis counseling center in Virginia); chairman, Board of Trustees, King Fahad Hospital, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; and board member, Hospital Council of Southern California.

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PERSPECTIVES:

One of the best parts of being the editor of this newsletter is that it provides me the opportunity to meet and work with people from around the world. I’m always intrigued by their stories and how they came to be at the place they are in their lives and their careers.  By far, one of most amazing stories I’ve heard is that of Amy Bowzaylo, D.C., of Saad Specialist Hospital in Al-Khobar, Saudi Arabia.

A Canadian by birth, Dr. Bowzaylo studied at the Palmer College of Chiropractic West in San Jose, Calif., graduating in 1996. Upon graduation Dr. Bowzaylo began practicing in Santa Clara, Calif. and later in San Francisco. While spending a few months off in Vancouver in 1998, she met her future husband, Colin Nell, a petroleum engineer. They were married in 1999. The two shared a great passion for adventure, the outdoors, and mountain climbing.  In 2000, the couple moved to Colin’s homeland of Australia so he could pursue his career in drilling and geology. Proving the adage of “you can never go home,” in short order, Colin found that he was dissatisfied with his work and pursued an opportunity with Saudi Aramco. By the end of 2001, the young couple was living  in an Aramco gated community in the desert two hours from Al-Khobar, Saudi Arabia. As Dr. Bowzaylo explains, “Colin moved in July before us. My oldest daughter, Sierra (born March 2, 2001 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada) and I moved to Saudi Arabia around seven years ago.  At the time, my friends and family were all saying, ‘What? Are you nuts?’ From the outside I’m sure it looked a little crazy, but the company Colin was working for treated us well, and we felt very welcome and at home with the expat community that existed there.”

Prior to moving to Al-Khobar, Dr. Bowzaylo got in touch with the chiropractic association of Saudi Arabia to learn of her options.

“When I got here it turned out the ‘association’ was one chiropractor registered with the chiropractic diplomatic corps, and he practiced under Royal decree, meaning he worked for the Royal Family,” recalls Dr. Bowzaylo. “He was very nice, but ultimately it was up to me to find a way to practice.”

On November 14, 2002, Dr. Bowzaylo gave birth to her second daughter. The child’s arrival was the source of much interest and excitement at the Saudi hospital.

“Imogen was the first expat baby born at the hospital in seven or eight years,” says Dr. Bowzaylo. “Add to that, I, a normally tiny woman, had ballooned up like a pufferfish. By the time I hit the delivery room I was 227 pounds. I dropped 40 of that immediately after delivery, plus the baby weighed 10 pounds, which is simply enormous compared to Saudi babies, who are typically 6.5 pounds or so. Add to that the fact that I was blonde and the baby had a full head of black hair. We were a source of much curiosity.”

Dr. Bowzaylo recalls waking up in her bed only to find several Saudi women patiently sitting on the floor waiting for her to wake up so they could talk to her. Their grasp of English was not strong, but it didn’t discourage them from asking questions ranging from the personal to the political.

“Is your husband a giant?” “Where did you come from?” “Canada…Is it all frozen?”

“This went on for the entire length of my stay,” continues Dr. Bowzaylo. “Both Imogen and I were seemingly the most interesting thing that the hospital had seen in years. It was all very odd, but the people were so nice and caring it was hard to get annoyed.”

Sadly, in April 2004 Dr. Bowzaylo’s mother was reaching the end stages of cancer back home in Canada. Dr. Bowzaylo and her family flew home to be with her at the end, arriving just 12 hours before she passed away.
 
In the days that followed the funeral, Dr. Bowzaylo tended to the affairs of her mother’s estate while her husband went off to climb Mount Brock to clear his head and come to terms with losing his mother-in-law. On April 22, just two weeks after losing her mother, Dr. Bowzaylo lost her husband when he fell during the climb.

Suddenly a single mother on the opposite side of the planet from her new home, Dr. Bowzaylo stayed in Canada until mid-May to gather herself and plan for the relocation of her family back to Canada. She returned to her Saudi Aramco home with her daughters and began the painful process of packing up her life.

“Exiting the Kingdom, as it’s called,takes time,” says Dr. Bowzaylo. “There are a lot of forms and paperwork to be completed. By early August I had finally gotten it all together and was ready to go. You’re actually assigned an exit date and just two days before mine I got a call from Saad Specialist Hospital asking me to interview for a position.

“As it turned out, my patients from Udhailiyah had gone to the hospital chiropractors’ administrators and put in a good word for me. But as I said to them, I didn’t know how I could possibly do that. I had two little girls, my life was in boxes, and I was scheduled to depart. They said, ‘Don’t worry about it. Bring the girls, we’ll have sitters here, we’ll send a car,’ and so on.”

“And so,” she recalls, “I went in the next day and interviewed. I was very clear in explaining what it would take to get me to stay, and they were very clear about the opportunity. At the end of the conversation they told me go have a cup of coffee in the cafeteria. Twenty minutes later,” she says, laughing, “I had an offer, and my life had taken yet another dramatic turn.”

Since her initial hiring, Dr. Bowzaylo has risen to the position of deputy director of Allied Health at the hospital. In this role, she’s responsible for physical medicine and rehabilitation, Chinese and alternative medicine, laser therapy, social services, and hair transplant, the latter being a new department to the hospital.
 
In addition, Dr. Bowzaylo serves as president of the newly formed Chiropractic Association of Saudi Arabia.

“My position at the hospital is simply an amazing opportunity,” she says. “It’s a private, 550-bed tertiary hospital. We have over 40 nationalities represented on staff. The shareholders are very supportive and generous, which allows us to invest very heavily in training and equipment.”

The hospital boasts a nursing college, training institute, and simulation center all on campus. Plus, it is the only triple-accredited hospital in the world (Joint Commission International Accreditation, Accreditation Canada, and Australian Accreditation).

According to Dr. Bowzaylo, “The standard of care is very high, and the equipment is simply state-of-the-art. We have both a Lokomat® (robot-assisted walking) and an Armeo® (functional upper extremity) for rehabilitation. The Lokomat® is the only one in the Middle East.”

Dr. Bowzaylo finds the biggest difference between Western and Middle Eastern patients is the level of self-awareness they have of their bodies. “The Middle Eastern patient base is simply not as self-aware. Their public schooling contains no physical education for females, and what males receive is rather limited. It’s simply not a society that exercises or promotes health, but that is changing.”

As a result approximately 42 percent of the population suffers from diabetes. Plus, as Dr. Bowzaylo describes it, “Obesity is on the rise.”  

Another difference is the lack of intermediate facilities. “People tend to be afraid to go home,” says Dr. Bowzaylo. “Even if they’ve had a stroke and are semi-self-sufficient, the families are not comfortable taking them home.  There are no nursing homes or long-term care facilities. The families have to become the caretakers, and they can be quite resistant and fearful of it. Quite often they hire home nursing care. In fact, one of the jobs of our discharge planning team is to help families set up this kind of arrangement. Interestingly, most of the home care nurses tend to be from the Philippines.”

 Dr. Bowzaylo routinely sees a number of foreign patients, many of whom work for the oil and contracting companies in the region. “At Saad Specialist Hospital we issue medical visas to people to come for care, especially in the area of rehabilitation after a stroke or kidney transplant.”

Because of the hospital’s state-of-the-art equipment and training, it’s expected that more travel visas will be issued  for patients seeking chiropractic, intense medical rehabilitation, OB/GYN, plastic surgery, and organ transplant. “Medical travel is not something the hospital has aggressively pursued,” says Bowzaylo, “But given our equipment and capabilities and the many ethnic populations we serve, I anticipate it could be a real growth area for us in the future.”

To learn more about Saad Specialist Hospital, click here. 

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INDUSTRY NEWS

TIME Magazine Covers a Brief History of Medical Travel

Last week's issue of TIME magazine offered readers a brief history of medical travel and a look at current offerings and trends. To view the article, click here.
Link published with permission of Time Inc.

Star Hospitals Launches Sophisticated Medical Tourism Web Site
Tuesday November 25, 2008, Toronto
Star Hospitals, a North American medical tourism service, is helping millions worldwide gain access to high quality, timely, and affordable medical treatment overseas with the launch of its new Web site.

The Web site goes a step beyond the company’s present call center, which is operated by doctors, physician assistants, paramedics, physiotherapists, and other medical professionals by creating a password-protected-folder feature that ensures absolute privacy.

Starhospitals.net provides an instant resource for concise and up-to-the-minute information related to medical travel that allows patients the opportunity to engage in a “live chat” with facility doctors, who will answer questions about traveling overseas for healthcare.

Additionally, because Star Hospitals understands the importance of a companion while traveling for medical treatment, it has dedicated a page on its site featuring its extensive companion programs.

“This new Web site is designed to help people make informed decisions about every aspect of medical travel,” says Kumar Jagadeesan, vice president of Star Hospitals.net. “With the current state of the economy, more people than ever are looking at medical travel as a high-quality, cost-effective medical option that offers a wide choice of procedures without the wait.”

Star Hospitals.net is utilizing its new Web site to announce that the majority of their hospitals are accredited or working toward accreditation by the Joint Commission International (JCI), the National Accreditation Board of Hospitals (NABH), the International Standards Organization (ISO), and/or other facilities in India, Singapore, and Thailand. A link is provided so users can easily view pertinent details and navigate to the coordinating hospital’s respective Web site.

“Our goal is to offer a quick and educational way for people to learn more about medical procedures and surgeries abroad, some of which could save users 60 to 80 percent of the cost of a similar procedure in their native country,” Jagadeesan added.

For more info: http://www.starhospitals.net

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DESTINATION

Robin Elsham is busy preparing for a trip to East Asia. We look forward to his upcoming first-hand reports from Korea and Taiwan. In the meantime, you may access previous stories at the following links.

• Guatemala
• New Zealand
• Monterrey
• Panama
• Philippines
• Malaysia
• Changes in air travel certain to cause major changes in medical tourism industry
• Inflation's Threat to Medical Tourism
• Adopting a Global Perspective

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MEDICAL SPOTLIGHT: Substance Abuse

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), there are 76.3 million people with alcohol use disorders worldwide and at least 15.3 million people with drug use disorders. And while drug treatment programs have been proven to save both lives and money (for every dollar invested in drug treatment, $7 are saved in health and social costs), not everyone with a substance abuse issue is getting the services they need. According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, a lack of health care coverage is one of the leading reasons for this.

Today many people are traveling abroad for affordable in-patient treatment care. Countries such as Israel, India, Costa Rica, Cuba, and South Africa are attracting patients from neighboring countries and around the globe.

Ira Nissel, CEO of Israel-based IMS Global Limited, reports that the majority of their patients come from the former Russian countries, Nigeria, and Mongolia. He attributes a recent uptick in patients to the fact that Israel and Russia have abolished the need for visas to travel to Israel. In addition, says Nissel, "For many of our patients, in their home country there is little to no public/private medical infrastructure. There's also a lack of trust in local medical professionals and a general lack of experience in the field of substance abuse treatment."

Treatment approaches vary from facility to facility, but a typical in-patient stay is at least three months and can last up to eight months. Costs also vary depending upon the location, length of stay, and type of treatment. For example, IMS Global Limited's long-term substance abuse program is on a Moshav, a type of cooperative agricultural community. The work-study program, which offers three- to eight-month programs, runs $5,500 USD per month, including housing, food, activities, and all services. 

The Minnesota House in South Africa is a residential facility that takes just 12 patients at a time. A six-week program for foreigners is about $2,000 USD.
Approaches to follow-up care also vary. IMS Global depends on local partners for follow-ups. "We have local phone numbers diverted to our offices in Israel," says Nissel. "We're always available through e-mail, as well." 

Is there a topic you'd like to see covered in our MEDICAL SPOTLIGHT? Please let us know. Send your thoughts to ahaar@cpronline.com

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UPCOMING EVENTS

Consumer Health World 2008: Leading National/International Platform to Identify Post-Election Healthcare Solutions for Employers, Providers, and Health Plans

Consumer Health World 2008 (www.consumerhealthworld.com) is the major post-election conference to evaluate the impact of a new presidential administration and set strategies for short and long-term health care solutions. The Hyatt Regency Crystal City Hotel sets the stage for health care change on December 7-10, 2008, in Arlington, Va. This is the not-to-be-missed networking and best return-on-your-investment opportunity of the year. Employers, payers, providers, and the international hospital and health care community will tackle issues related to the current financial crisis and its implications for healthcare delivery, consumer access to care, and technological advances that promote convenience and cost savings for all stakeholders

Free media registration

Consumer Health World focuses on the three key areas that drive transformation in healthcare: enlightened consumerism, globalization, and innovative technologies. Conference programming is organized around three corresponding events, which are co-located with shared keynotes and expo floor booths: The National Conference on Health Care Consumerism, The Health Care Globalization Summit, The Health 3.0 Summit.

For Employers: Sessions will discuss how value-based health design and employee health must be viewed as an investment that companies make rather than an expense. By connecting innovative plan design and funding options with wellness and prevention strategies, employers can lower their health benefit costs while also improving productivity.

For Payers and Providers: The latest wave of health care industry innovation, dubbed "Health 3.0", has arrived. This track incorporates value-based design in health care delivery and insurance platforms, combined with social networking technologies and heightened consumer engagement. It provides real solution options for patients, payers, and providers.

For International Providers: U.S. employers and consumers are evaluating opportunities to lower health care costs at accredited medical facilities outside the United States that are offering affordable, high-quality healthcare alternatives for patients. This event will feature dedicated time for the international community to share educational sessions and networking opportunities with other key U.S. stakeholder groups, including employers, payers, and providers. “Given our current economic crisis, now is the time for employers, investors, providers, and consumers to wrestle health care costs head on,” says Skip Brickley, CEO of Transmarx, the nation’s leader in coordinating premiere health care conferences. “Consumer Health World taps the leading thinkers in the industry who are providing much needed guidance in tackling today's most pressing issues. Attendees will come away with go-forward strategies and practical solutions that can be readily implemented in the workplace.”

Keynote Speakers and Headliners for Consumer Health World include:

• Karen Bell, M.D., MMS, Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology.
• Clement Bezold, Ph.D., chairman, Institute for Alternative Futures.
• Troy Brennan, M. D., chief medical officer, Aetna.
• Grad Conn, senior director of Product Marketing, Microsoft Health Solutions Group.
• Dave Hom, co-Founder, chairman, Center for Health Value Innovation.
• Khawar Mann, partner, Apax Partners.
• Mark McClellan, M.D., director, Engelberg Center for Healthcare Reform.
• William Novelli, chief executive officer, AARP.
• David Judge, M.D., medical director, Ambulatory Practice for the Future.
• M. Mitchell Latinik, VP, Global Business Development, The University of Texas M. D., Anderson Cancer Center.
• Sangita Reddy, executive director, Apollo Hospital.
• Reed V. Tuckson, M. D., executive VP, chief of medical affairs, United Health Group.
• Steve Tucker, M. D., president, International Medical Travel Association.
• Jeff Gruen, M. D., MBA, chair director, PRTM
• Joseph Woodman, chair president, Healthy Travel Company, author, Patients Beyond Borders.
• Paul Keckley, Ph.D., executive director, Deloitte Center for Health Solutions.

Brickley adds, “We are the place where innovation connects with legacy systems and companies to redefine healthcare and create unparalleled opportunities for business executives and their respective companies.”

About Consumer Health World
Consumer Health World management is one of the country's premier conference and trade show producers with vertical industry expertise in advertising, marketing, healthcare, media, travel, financial services, entertainment, and sports. Consumer Health World management currently produces the following “Consumer Health World” events: The National Conference On Health Care Consumerism (www.nchconsumerism.com), The Health 3.0 Summit (www.health30summit.com), and The Health Care Globalization Summit (www.hcglobalsummit.com).

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Date Set for Healthcare Travel Exhibition & Congress in Dubai: January 26-29, 2009

With the health care travel industry poised to play an important part in Dubai's growth strategy, the Institute for International Research (IIR) Middle East, the organizers of the first medical tourism conference in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which concluded in Dubai, recently have reported high levels of interest from a potentially huge international market.

"Research unveiled at the event indicated a global market of around two million medical travelers a year and an industry constrained by hospital capacity and lack of consumer familiarity with medical travel," says Sietske Meerloo, marketing manager at IIR Middle East and organizer of Healthcare Travel Exhibition & Congress.

IIR Middle East is also the organizer of the Arab Health exhibition and congress, the region's premier event for Middle East healthcare that takes place in Dubai 26-29, January, 2009.

“Large numbers of hospitals and clinics around the world are attempting to tailor their health services to cater to medical tourists," Meerloo added. "Several major insurance companies offer a travel component in their policies and governments are looking closely at policies to take account of the trend."

The health care event was officially opened by Haidar Al Yousuf, M.D., transition director at the Dubai Health Authority, who highlighted the importance the Authority is placing on the future of medical tourism.

"As we look to develop our domestic health strategy, we also want to develop a joint strategy with our colleagues in the Department of Tourism & Commerce Marketing (DTCM), for the future of health tourism in Dubai," says Dr. Al Yousuf. "The health care sector in Dubai will become an increasingly attractive place for international health care investors, providers, services, facilities, and other health care professionals."
PlanetHospital, a California-based leader in medical tourism, used the event as a platform to announce the official opening of its Jeddah Saudi Arabia office to serve inbound and outbound medical tourists from the Arabian Gulf region.

"The Gulf has the potential to drive growth in medical tourism," says Mohammed Alarifi, managing director for the new operation. "It is not only a destination from where patients seek medical care abroad but is also becoming a medical tourism destination itself thanks to major hospital developments throughout the region."

The American Hospital Dubai also had high visibility at the event. There was "a lot of exchange of experience among colleagues from around the world," says Naser Saleh, director of marketing and sales. “On the conference side, the sessions were very informative."

Gary Miller, CEO of Health Travel TV, says the event had been important for them. "We have a unique product, and we’re the only broadcast media here dedicated to this area," he says. “I’m coming back to Arab Health in January."

Organized in association with the International Medical Travel Association, the Healthcare Travel Exhibition and Congress was supported by the UAE Ministry of Health and the Health Authority of Abu Dhabi. Platinum sponsors were Singapore Medicine. Gold sponsors were the American Hospital Dubai and Dubai Health Authority.

For details about Arab Health events, please visit: www.arabhealthonline.com

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Asia’s Biggest Landmark Healthcare Congress – Global Health Conference (GHC) 2009—Announces Its Agenda

Disease management will directly impact the future models of care. But what shape and form these models will take is of question. Will we see more of specialized hospitals? If so, where will they be located? How will innovative ‘disruptive’ technologies help the future health care cities and hospitals cater to and deal directly with new disease management?

The future of health care delivery lies mostly in disease-based intervention programs. The health care cities and hospitals of the future will greatly benefit from a clearer understanding of how to effectively integrate disease management into future facilities and core competencies to be built.

Another contributing factor that will shape future care models is the growing number of highly valued patients globally – many of whom are crossing international borders in search of quality care and access. How should hospitals convert their centers of excellence to cater to this growing sector? How can they adequately build capacity and expertise to ensure they are able to meet new and growing demands?

Leaders in global healthcare will be tackling these issues head-on at Asia’s biggest landmark health care congress, Global Health Conference (GHC) 2009, which will feature two co-located events, “Healthcare Cities & Hospitals of the Future” and “Crossing International Borders” (February 23-26, 2009, Singapore).

For more information on the event, please visit www.magenta-global.com.sg/healthcare or kindly contact:
Attn: Ms Catherina Koh
Conference Director
Magenta Global Pte Ltd
DID: (65) 6391 2539
Email: catherina.koh@magenta-global.com.sg with subject code “GHC-MTT”

For media inquiries, please contact:
Nathalie Visele
Director
Shamal Marketing Communications
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Tel.: +9715 04576525
E-mail: nathalie@theshamalgroup.com

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Thailand Convention & Exhibition Bureau to Sponsor the 2009 World Medical Health Tourism Conference in Phuket

Thailand Convention & Exhibition Bureau (TCEB) is set to sponsor the World Medical Health Tourism Conference: A New Way Forward, which will be held in Phuket, Thailand, September 2009.

TCEB’s participation and sponsorship in this internationally diverse networking event will aim to promote Thailand on an international scale as a medical tourism destination and a preferred venue for international meeting, incentive, convention, and exhibition (MICE) events.

The whole of Phuket Island is getting behind the conference, which will cater to more than 1,200 delegates. Local supporters range from local community groups, tourism operators, and many of the major hoteliers and resort owners, namely Woraburi Phuket Resort, Millennium Resort Patong, The Moevenpick Resort, Karon Beach Resort of Kata Group, Aquamarine Resort, Cape Panwa Hotel, and Andaman Seaview Hotel group.

Phuket, dubbed as the medical tourism hub in Asia, is the ideal location to hold the conference because of its infrastructure, capacity to host a massive number of international guests, and the availability of cutting-edge technology and internationally trained medical experts manning their world-class medical facilities.

Sometime within the next month the floor plan or layout for exhibitors at the venue, Hilton Phuket Arcadia Resort & Spa, will be published online and application forms will be available for the exhibitors to download from the Web site. Many pre-conference and post-conference activities have been planned for the conference, which early estimates expect to bring a windfall to Phuket of about U.S. $10 million over the two-week period. Interested parties are advised to visit the conference website: www.sosmedicaltourism.com for more information.

Alternatively, for more information call + (66)76-289-800, to request a printable registration brochure by email sosmedical@sosmedicaltourism.com or sosmedical@ymail.com