Frost & Sullivan: Malaysia -- The 20 by 2020 Inevitability
Medical Tourism and Aged Care to Drive Malaysian Private Healthcare Industry
Medical Tourism and Aged Care to Drive Malaysian Private Healthcare Industry
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, Jan. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Malaysian healthcare expenditure could rise as high as USD20 billion by 2020 due to the rising incidences of chronic diseases, increasing healthcare costs especially in Wilayah Persekutuan and Selangor due to urbanisation, and a weak ringgit.
While the public sector is hampered by limitations in healthcare budget and the ability to retain experienced talent, the private sector is gearing up to meet competitive challenges with a stronger, more innovative play that is targeted to provide both financial and social returns. One of the key areas for development is further public and private healthcare integration and a social health insurance platform that can enable a more balanced healthcare environment within the country.
At a market size of close to USD500 million, the Asia Pacific Healthcare market (consisting of pharmaceuticals, medical devices and healthcare technology) represents 30% of global revenues, and is still the fastest growing region globally with a growth rate of 11.5% projected for 2016 (in comparison, the global projected growth rate is 6.9%).
Some of the key developments forecast for the industry in Asia and Malaysia are:
Malaysia is well-positioned to harness opportunities in the healthcare services industry especially in areas such as primary care, specialty services, diagnostics services, medical tourism and aged care.
According to Ms. Rhenu Bhuller, Partner at Frost & Sullivan, healthcare services in Malaysia as well as in neighbouring countries like Singapore, especially in the public sector, are facing capacity constraints.
"In early 2014, the bed occupancy rate (BOR) in Singapore was 87.2% with an increase of 1.4% compared to that in the previous year. The Malaysian public sector is under similar pressure with 1 out of 4 hospitals having a BOR of more than 85%. This is creating opportunities to develop infrastructure, use technologies and new business models in delivering healthcare services to satisfy both local demand as well as foreign patients that use healthcare services in Malaysia. States like Johor will continue to see investments in private healthcare delivery in areas such as aged care and integrated healthcare," she said.
Currently, per capita spending on health and both public and private healthcare expenditure is expected to continue its upward trajectory. Driven by issues such as urbanisation, chronic diseases (especially diabetes), and vector borne diseases (like dengue), delivering quality healthcare services with current budgets and resources will be a challenge.
"Malaysia needs to further develop healthcare resources, particularly specialists and ancillary healthcare workers, and technical healthcare skills as there is a resource gap," said Ms. Bhuller. "As Malaysia is continuing to work towards attracting investors as well as medical tourists, areas such as resources and technology application, as well as stronger public-private integration will be key success factors."
Medical tourism . . . growing competitively
Malaysia is an emerging centre of medical tourism in APAC and in 2015, Malaysia's medical tourism industry was estimated to have earned revenues of USD350 million. While the country holds less than 3% of APAC medical tourism revenues, growth rates are above market at 15% year-on-year. Thailand is still the benchmark with 50% market share, followed by India at 30%. All other countries make up the additional 20% in this highly competitive industry.
Efforts made to growth this sector are expected to highlight Malaysia's advantages to medical tourist as a location for high quality, cost effective healthcare. Additionally, with the current international wave of interest for wellness and traditional therapies Malaysia is well placed to attract health travellers for a combination of wellness and health vacations.
Demand and growth potential for aged care services as Malaysia gains attractiveness as a retirement location
As elderly population dynamics change, there is a shift in the way the future elderly will live. While Asia traditionally tends to be a care at home aged care dynamic, retirement villages and elderly care centres are increasing in Thailand and Malaysia specifically. In Malaysia, Penang and Johor Bahru are expected to see more development, with partnerships between Malaysian and foreign companies with experience in aged care services (such as those from Australia and Japan) enabling developments with a range of services positioning Malaysia as a favourable location for aged care services.
Frost & Sullivan's 2016 Predictions for the Healthcare Industry in South East Asia:
Frost & Sullivan's Transformational Health 360° Research helps you to better understand buyer-seller dynamics as the healthcare system transitions to digital information, the pace at which new and innovative medical devices and systems are being adopted and getting embedded into the typical clinical pathway, both in mature and emerging markets, and enables you to bring clarity to pharmaceutical/biotechnology, in-vitro diagnostics and life science research tools market decisions and implementation tactics. To view current and upcoming research, please visit http://www.frost.com/c/10024/sublib/category-index.do?category=industry
About Frost & Sullivan
Frost & Sullivan, the Growth Partnership Company, works in collaboration with clients to leverage visionary innovation that addresses the global challenges and related growth opportunities that will make or break today's market participants. For more than 50 years, we have been developing growth strategies for the global 1000, emerging businesses, the public sector and the investment community. Is your organization prepared for the next profound wave of industry convergence, disruptive technologies, increasing competitive intensity, Mega Trends, breakthrough best practices, changing customer dynamics and emerging economies? Contact us: Start the discussion
Media Contact:
Carrie Low
Corporate Communications -- Asia Pacific
P: +603 6204 5910
F: +603 6201 7402
E: carrie.low@frost.com
Photo - http://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20160127/8521600555
Share this article