Thailand as Medical Tourism & Wellness Destination for Chinese?

Can Thailand Become a Medical Tourism and Wellness Destination for Chinese Visitors? The Thai Medical & Wellness Trade and Media Familiarization Trip 2013 was held from August 12th to 18th of 2013. The event was hosted by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), in conjunction with Thai Airway, The Centara Grand and Mymedholiday.com. The event was held to bring together major foreign players in the tourism and wellness field, along with selected media participants. Events like this are part of TAT's strategy to further increase Thailand's stature as one of the world's leading medical travel and wellness destinations. Interestingly, there were two delegates from mainland China and one from Hong Kong this year. It's obvious to all involved that China, which already sends more visitors each year to Thailand than any other nation, is the largest potential market for Thailand's medical and wellness tourism industries. Mr. Mark Hughes, of Premier Health Services, a Hong Kong-based medical tourism company attended the event and said, "We see a rising trend of mainland Chinese visitors visiting Thailand for wellness and medical treatment driven by a combination of rising incomes, a more curious populace ready to explore beyond the borders of China, a recognition of the importance of health and a willingness to invest in it and cultural influences impacting China such as movies `Lost in Thailand.'" However, Mr. Pan Weizhong, of LuckTour Medical Tourism, a Shanghai-based medical tourism company who also attended the event, noted that Thailand is better known to most mainland Chinese as a wellness destination (spa, massage and other wellness treatments). However, he pointed out that, "The number of Chinese looking for IVF and PGD treatments (infertility) in Thailand is increasing considerably. The main reason is that one can choose the male embryo to have a son. In fact, most Chinese receiving IVF and PGD in Thailand do not have infertility problems." Beyond this, he noted, relatively few mainland Chinese visit Thailand for medical treatment. Thus, it is clear that there is vast potential in China for Thailand to market itself as a medical tourism destination. Mr. Pan said, "In marketing, there is a progression line from `acquaintance', `trial', to `repeat' and `loyal'. The Chinese market has not reached acquaintance yet. I believe what Thailand should do now is simply `let people know'. China is already the number one source market for Thailand. It is not difficult to input some ideas in the tourists' minds. Having a huge poster saying `Thailand – No 1 medical tourist destination in Asia' in the airport alone will have a huge impact on Chinese tourists. After all kinds of marketing activities towards to the mass tourists market and gradually letting people know that Thailand actually has good medical service, TAT can further their cooperation with medical tourism agencies in China." Mr. Hughes reaches a similar conclusion about Thailand's efforts to market itself to the Chinese market, "I think the biggest challenge is to take Thailand's brand upmarket to convince visitors of the international quality of its health care (IE international accreditation etc). Thailand is seen as a nice place for massage and shopping but needs to convince of its expertise." He noted that, currently, many medical tourists travel to South Korea for plastic surgery, attracted, he says, by its perceived expertise, proximity to China and the number of Mandarin speakers on hand. He says that adding Mandarin speakers to their staff is one of the best ways for Thai medical tourism providers to increase their appeal to mainland Chinese. When asked what specific procedures and services are likely to appeal to the Chinese market (beyond the IVF services that are already popular), Mr. Pan said, "But after this FAM trip, my company is closely working with a famous Thai Clinic, trying to develop an anti-aging cell therapy product for our clients. Currently, most Chinese go to Switzerland to receive a similar therapy, but Thailand's treatment is cheaper and more potent. I am quite confident that Thailand can beat Switzerland in this filed and my company wants to be the first to promote Thailand as the ideal place for anti-aging." Asked the same question, Mr. Hughes said that Thailand should focus on "procedures (that) may also be suited to Chinese tastes, double eyelid, v-jaw , rhinoplasty etc." He went on to say that "Thailand offers a good mix of quality and price, as well as other draws such as shopping and food." Mentioned in this article: Premier Health Services: Based in Hong Kong and Guangzhou, Premier Health Services arranges high-quality medical treatment from the world's leading healthcare providers in the fields of IVF and fertility treatment, revitalization anti-aging, cosmetic surgery and health and cancer screening. Premier Health Services only partners with providers who are leaders in their fields via international and local accreditation. LuckTour Medical Tourism: LuckTour Medical Tourism is a Shanghai-based medical facilitator. It provides premium health check-up and high-end anti-aging services. It works with prestigious Japanese and Singaporean hospitals that incorporate the latest technology, such as the PET-MR scan for cancer screening and cell therapy for anti-aging. For more information: Visit the TAT Homepage. By Chris Rowthorn, China Travel Trends Bangkok Correspondent from China Travel Trends http://chinatraveltrends.com

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