Malaysia Medical Tourism:2017

The medical tourism industry in Malaysia is expected to achieve its targeted revenue of RM1.3bil in 2017 according to Malaysia Healthcare Travel Council (MHTC).

CEO Sherene Azli said the industry was experiencing a 30% growth year-on-year. “Malaysia has the ecosystem and infrastructure to provide quality end-to-end healthcare system and services that are globally competitive,” she told reporters after the launch of ShareMyLove campaign here.

The campaign was part of MHTC’s efforts in promoting Malaysian hospitality and its excellent healthcare services. 

On average, medical travellers’ contributions to the economy were double that of the regular tourists.

“On average, a foreign patient would spend about RM1,000 per visit, not including other expenditures while being in the country,” she said.

Revenue from medical tourism stood at RM1 bil in the 2016 financial year.

On prospects, MHTC estimated that one million visitors would flock to Malaysia this year, contributing up to RM5bil to the total gross domestic product.

Last year, over 860,000 medical travellers sought treatment in the country. The number was expected to grow, with more private hospitals able to cater to more foreign patients.

Private hospitals nationwide currently have an estimated 15,000 beds.

The top five treatments were cardiology, oncology, orthopedics, IVF, dental and cosmetics. Indonesia and Singapore, formed the largest chunks of medical tourists, with the industry also seeing an increase in the flow from West Asia and other Western countries. 

Malaysia has been awarded Health and Medical Tourism: Destination of the Year for two consecutive years (2015 and 2016) by the International Medical Travel Journal.

 /theSTAR 10,14-02-2017

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Pharmaniaga APPL Tender: 2017

Pharmaniaga Bhd plans to launch more products as it anticipates the industry to perform better this year.

Managing director Datuk Farshila Emran said: “Despite the global economic challenges last year, we still did well in 2016 and expect to do better this year.” Pharmaniaga is looking forward to launch more products for cardiovascular, oncology and vaccines as well as its over-the-counter (OTC) products this year.

The company currently has about 430 ethical drugs and OTC products.

Pharmaniaga would be expanding its logistics and distribution business by offering its services to more multinational pharmaceutical companies.

“So, for this year, our capital expenditure is expected to be slightly higher at RM60mil compared with over RM50mil last year,” she said at a briefing on Pharmaniaga’s concession business with the government to facilitate e-Tender exercise for 2017-2019 tender process cycle.

Pharmaniaga is expected to receive about 1,500 tender submissions within the next two days from various potential pharmaceutical and non-pharmaceutical vendors for products listed in the Approved Product Purchase List (APPL) required by the Health Ministry.

As part of its concession agreement with the ministry, Pharmaniaga is required to facilitate the e-Tender exercise for the 2017-2019 tender process cycle.

“APPL e-Tender is not a new exercise. We have undertaken similar exercises every three years, the last one was in 2013. It is aimed at providing a business avenue for the pharmaceutical and non-pharmaceutical vendors to supply products required by the government,” explained Farshila.

As the concession holder, Pharmaniaga has got the consent from the government to carry out the APPL e-Tender procedure. However, the company is not involved in the evaluation and selection stage, which will be managed solely by the government.

“Every step of this exercise, whether via online or offline, will be scrutinised and supervised closely by the officers from the ministry and an external auditor to ensure that it is secured and conducted with integrity and transparent manner,” she added.

 /theSTAR 25-01-2017

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"Performance Driven Reward" Compensation Package

Performance-driven reward systems will become a norm in workplaces as employers are forced to “rework their compensation packages” to attract and engage with their employees.

This is because salary increases fell by 0.4% to 5.2% last year, according to the 2016 Total Compensation Measurement Survey by Aon Hewitt.

Although the GDP grew at a steady 4.2%, the CPI was 1.8% higher in November last year compared with the figures for the same month in 2015, it said.

“The decline in salary increases translates to real wages diminishing for the Malaysian workforce.

“As a result, employers are pressured to rework their compensation packages to engage their talent more effectively,” said Aon Hewitt, a global talent, retirement, and health solutions business of Aon plc in a statement yesterday.

The survey, which measures how organisations are addressing projected salary budgets, variable pay, and cost-saving initiatives, was based on findings collected from 232 employers nationwide.

The salary trend for fresh graduates, however, remained optimistic as local employers are expected to continue “paying a premium” for jobs in high-tech and engineering related fields.

Fresh graduates in the field of engineering, research and development, and project management were offered the highest starting salaries – over RM3,500 a month – while fresh graduates in high-tech industries are paid 27% more than those in property and construction.

“Throughout the nation, more than half of the fresh graduates entering employment earned less than RM2,500 per month,” it said.

Fresh graduates, although inexperienced, are “digital natives” and that contributed to relevant skills needed in today’s market.

/theSTAR 25-01-2017

 
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Dengue Cases, 2016: Reduction of 16.1% or 19,479 cases over 2015

There was a significant drop in the number of dengue fever cases in Malaysia with deaths down by almost a third despite an increase in neighbouring countries.

The total number of cases for last year, 2016 was 101,357 compared with 120,836 for 2015, a reduction of 16.1% or 19,479 cases, way past the 5% annual reduction targeted while the number of deaths fell by a third.

While dengue fever took another six lives in the last week of last year, the total number of deaths for the year was 237 compared with 336 deaths in 2015, a 29.5% drop or 99 cases fewer, the National Crisis Preparedness Res­ponse Cen­­tre (CPRC) posted on Facebook on Tuesday.

In fact, it managed to reduce dengue cases despite Singapore, Laos and Vietnam expe­riencing an increase, according to the Malaysian Health Ministry.

The last time Malaysia experienced a drop was in 2011. In 2010, a total of 46,171 cases were recorded and in 2011, the numbers were down to 19,884. However, it had been on an upward trend since then, until last year.

Health Director General, Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said the Ministry was pleased that it managed to control the dengue situation much better compared to pre­vious years.

“But we certainly can do better and will work with all stakeholders to achieve better results this year, 2017 and beyond,” he said.

Based on the Strategic Planning for Dengue Prevention and Control for 2015 to 2020, the Ministry’s target is 5% dengue cases reduction annually.

Despite the reduction, Dr Noor Hisham warned that the dengue situation was unpredictable due to factors such as environmental cleanliness, climate change, community behaviour of littering, vector behaviour, virus and increased population mobility. 

“Dengue cases are closely associated with environmental cleanliness and Aedes mosquito population,” he said.

 /theSTAR 06-01-2017

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TCM: Prices Rise!

Traditional Chinese Medicines (TCM) is no longer the cheaper alternative it once was as prices of herbs skyrocketed due to the global economy and high global demand.

As a result of the weak ringgit, it was now more costly to import such medicines from China, said Malay­sia Federation of Chinese Medicine Dealers and Practitioners Asso­ciation Secretary-General Kerk Ee Chan.

He said the price of some herbs went up by as much as 50% after the GST implementation in April, 2015 and the cost continues to rise steadily over the past year.

TCM plays a vital part in Chinese meals like soups besides its medicinal purposes.

“Traders are also feeling the pinch as we have members complaining of some 40% to 60% of drop in their businesses. They are barely scraping through each month,” he said in an interview.

Kerk said there was no sign of the prices stabilising due to the global economy and the weak ringgit, ad­vising consumers and practi­tioners to brace for a continuous increase that was expected to be­­come more acute after Chinese New Year.

“The price increase does not only apply to herbs but also medicinal liquors and ointments, commonly used for tui na (a form of Chinese therapeutic massage), which has gone up by a whopping 150%,” he added.

This led to a negative impact on the development of TCM as there were patients who avoided going to TCM clinics because of the cost.

Southern University College (Southern UC) TCM clinic department head Teo Chee Fung said me­­dicine like the tai zhi shen (a root herb), cost about RM140 per kg which was a sharp increase compared to the beginning of the year when it was sold at RM50 per kg.

He said the wu wei zi or Five Taste Fruit, which improves memory and the nervous system, went up by two-fold from RM60 per kg in January to about RM120 per kg by year end.

As for common root herbs such as dang gui and dang shen, usually used in tonics and soups, he said the prices went up by about 10% to RM110 per kg and RM140 per kg respectively since the begining of the year.

A check at Chinese Medical Halls showed other common herbs increased by about 5% to 10% since the beginning of the year such as the price of jing ying hua (honeysuckle flowers) which went up to RM55 per kg, chrysanthemum flo­wers (RM50 per kg) while red dates went up slightly to around RM10 per kg.

Southern UC TCM management committee chairman Lim Boon Hime said besides the high demand in traditional medicine, another contributing factor was the improvement of China’s economy, lifestyle and standard of living in recent years.

Many Chinese herb farmers have given up agriculture causing a blow to the global TCM industry.

“A trip to a TCM hall or clinic used to cost about RM20 to RM30 but nowadays it is common for the bill to come up to more than RM100,” he said, adding that certain herbs increased by a huge percentage from RM20 per kg to thousands of ringgit.

/theSTAR 27-12-2016

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Ministry of Health destroys RM2mil worth of expired Drugs

The Health Ministry has disposed of nearly RM 2 mil worth of expired or spoilt drugs and medicines over a two-year period from 2014.

Most of the medicines had been returned to government pharmacies by patients under the Minis­­try’s “Return Your Medicines” (PPU) programme, said Health director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah.

Some of the drugs which the Mi­­nistry disposed of, including anti-venom, were rarely used but Govern­ment hospitals need to have them in stock for emergencies. Other medicines had to be disposed as they had been damaged or spoilt due to disasters such as floods.

Among other reasons were patients ended up with expired or unused medicines was a change or discontinuation of a treatment. In other cases, patients ended up receiving a supply of the same me­­dicine from multiple sources as they might have "followed-up" appointments at different facilities.

Some returned medicines on behalf of patients who had died, while others had expired medicine either because they experienced side effects and stopped taking them or because they did not comply with the prescribed regiment.

The PPU programme was introduced in 2010 so that patients can return their unused or excess medicine for safe disposal by the ministry.

Dr Noor Hisham said the most common form of medicines which were returned by patients under the PPU programme were those used to treat diabetes, hypertension, high-cholesterol and gastritis. 

Among the steps taken by the ministry to reduce wastage was to supply patients’ medicine on a monthly basis. Patients, said Dr Noor Hisham, were also advised to inform their doctor or pharmacist if they still have the same medicine as prescribed at home.

“Patients are also encouraged to bring their medicines from home every time they come for refill so that we only top-up the supply accordingly instead of giving them extra.

“It is important for all parties, including patients and healthcare providers, to play their role in ensuring no wastage of medicines,” Dr Noor Hisham said.

“Patients are advised to be compliant towards their medication therapy while supports from the healthcare providers are available for patients if they have any issues with their medicines.”

Dr Noor Hisham said RM1.8mil worth of medicine were disposed of in 2014, equal to 0.075% of the mi­­nistry’s budget for that year.

Last year, medicine worth RM105,000 or 0.005% of the ministry’s budget were thrown out.

                                                                                                                                                                                        /theSTAR 27-12-2016

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Obesity, Diabetes, Cholesterol, Hypertension

One in two Malaysian adults is either overweight or obese, with the number increasing by four-fold in the last 20 years.

Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam said Malaysians are facing a health problem due to their unhealthy lifestyle. "A national health and morbidity survey shows that obesity is prevalent among Malaysians above 18, with the numbers drastically rising."

"The number of obesity cases in 1996 was 4.4% (of the population), rising to 14% in 2006. This rose to 15.1% in 2011 and 17.7% last year," he said in his speech when opening the Fruits and Vegetables Eating Campaign at Malaysia Agriculture, Horticulture and Agrotourism 2016 (MAHA 2016) here Tuesday.

He added some 30.3% of adults suffered weight problems. As a whole, one in two Malaysian adults is overweight or one in five is obese.

"In 2015, nearly half of Malaysian adults or 47.7% suffered from high cholesterol or hypercholesterolemia," he said.

Dr Subramaniam said an unhealthy lifestyle had also resulted in the number of diabetes cases in Malaysia to rise since 1996. "The disease will not be seen now but in 15 years when they come to hospital and end up losing an eye or having a limb amputated," he added.

The survey also revealed that diabetes cases rose from 11.6% in 1996 to 15.2% in 2006 and 17.5% last year.

However, he said there was a slight drop in hypertension cases - from 32.2% in 1996 to 32.7% in 2006 and 30.3% last year.

He noted that these ailments are linked to the unhealthy dietary habits of Malaysians who do not eat enough fruits and vegetables.

"Only 6% of Malaysian adults take enough fruits and vegetables, or two servings of fruits and three servings of vegetables as suggested by the Malaysian Dietary Guidelines 2010," he said.

He said that those who consume more greens and fruits are less susceptible to cancer, by between 5% and 12%.

Dr Subramaniam said the Government has introduced several awareness campaigns and programmes to encourage Malaysians to eat more fruits and greens. This includes the Healthy Cafeteria programme to get food operators to offer more fruits and greens on their menu.

He added that the National Plan of Action on Nutrition Malaysia III, covering 2016 to 2025, will ensure healthier eating habits by Malaysians.


At a press conference later, Dr Subramanian said a survey will be conducted in five years to see how effective the healthy diet campaigns have been.

/theSTAR 07-12-2016

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