Thailand heightens its healthcare hub ambition with integrative medicine
With a strong healthcare and wellness infrastructure and a reputation for highly-skilled professionals, Thailand is more than ever ready to realize its goal to become "The World's Medical and Wellness Hub".
Living with the Covid-19 pandemic, people start to recognize the equal importance of modern medicine and preventive practices in maintaining their good health and wellbeing.
Thailand has pushed toward providing comprehensive and holistic healthcare services to serve the rising consumer demand for the overall treatment of the body and mind.
In 2021, Thailand has been ranked 5th place in the world, and 1st place in Asia, in the Global Health Security Index by John Hopkins University for its pandemic response capacity.
The Health Care Index 2021 by CEO World magazine has ranked Thailand in 13th place based on overall health factors.
Affordable costs, high-quality medical professionals, world-class healthcare facilities and superb wellness services have propelled the demand for Thailand's medical and wellness services from abroad.
Before the coronavirus pandemic, the value of medical tourism in Thailand amounted to around nine billion U.S. dollars in 2019 and was forecast to reach approximately 24.4 billion U.S. dollars in 2027, according to Statista. Among the most sought-after medical services are general medical care and surgeries, sophisticated orthopaedics, in vitro fertilization, dental care and physical check-up.
"The growth in strength of the healthcare sector in Thailand has been supported by highly qualified and attentive medical personnel and world-class standard facilities.
Of more than 370 hospitals and medical facilities, 60 of them are accredited by the US-based Joint Commission International (JCI) as of December 2021, making the country top-five in the world in terms of the number of JCI-accredited healthcare facilities," said Joel A Roos, Vice President of International Accreditation, Quality Improvement and Safety in an interview with the International Travel & Health Insurance Journal.
Building on a strong foundation, the country aims to promote ten areas of medical and wellness services including regenerative and anti-ageing sciences, alternative medicine, cardio science, musculoskeletal, dental clinic, In Vitro fertilization, cancer treatment, surgeries, ophthalmology (cataract) and precision medicine.
Traditional therapeutic treatment such as Thai massage and herbal medicine has increasingly gained worldwide recognition. Many hospitals in Thailand have bridged the gap between medical treatment and preventive care, making healthcare more effective and comprehensive.
The country has also earned itself a reputation as "The Spa Capital of Asia" for its top-rated wellness experience that blends a variety of traditional healing practices with state-of-the-art health and wellness technologies.
Banking on the growing awareness of alternative healthcare's benefits, especially the preventive and holistic healing effects, the Thai government has initiated Green Medicine to innovate from its rich heritage of traditional medicine. More scientific research is being conducted to validate and develop traditional herbs for recognition and integration into modern healthcare services.
It's high time to embrace modern and traditional solutions for a healthier and happier life.
