Two medical tourism groups of business executives and their families from
China will go to Taiwan in April and are expected to bring in substantial
revenue. Walter Yeh of the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA)
says that with the average cost for a physical check-up ranging from US$1577
to US$4730) the 64 people from those groups are expected to spend a lot of
money during their five- to seven-day visits. The Guangzhou-based Xian Health and Medical Center, a new clinic funded by
several Taiwanese businessmen operating in China, organize the medical tour
groups. There is a membership fee for joining the centre, and every member
is entitled to a six-day trip to Taiwan, including a one-day physical check-up.
TAITRA advise that Southern China's Guangdong province enjoys the highest GDP
in the country, and it is targeting its capital city Guangzhou with a population
of 20 million, to promote medical tourism to Taiwan. With the assistance of the TAITRA, the centre, that already has over 1000 members,
reached agreements with 18 medical centres and hospitals in Taiwan last year to
organize the visits. As Taiwan has a good reputation for hip replacements and
knee and heart surgery, the centre can also help introduce those services to
potential Chinese clients. The Zion Health Management Institute in China is building the first top-quality
medical centre in the country, while strategically allying with 16 hospitals in
Taiwan, including Shin Kong Wu Ho-Su Memorial Hospital, Cathay General Hospital,
Changhua Christian Hospital, and Eonway Health Maintenance Center, as well as
three hospitals in China, including Zhongshan Hospital. It will offer comprehensive
physical checkups, treatment and upgraded services in dentistry, gynecology,
psychiatry, Chinese medicine, anti-aging and chiropractic. It is linking with
the World Society of Anti-aging Medicine (WOSAAM), an international non-profit
organization based in Paris in that promotes anti-aging medicine through research. A stem cell therapy centre built with donations from local business tycoon Terry
Gou was inaugurated recently at the National Taiwan University Hospital. It has
been named the Tai Cheng Stem Cell Therapy Center in memory of Gou Tai-cheng,
the donor's younger brother, who died of leukemia in Beijing in 2007. Gou wants
to help others suffering from the same disease. The centre has 14 stem cell
transplant wards and is only the first part of a US$472.56 million project
financed with donations by Gou, that will include a 249-bed oncology center-
as Gou’s wife died from cancer. | |
