Medical tourism should be about more than quick fixes, says Gerard Lelande, a CEO whose mission is to ensure the health of other executives
Despite the April and May political protests and riots in Bangkok, Gerard Lalande, chief executive officer of CEO Health, a medical service outsourcer, is confident that Thailand is still a highly competitive destination for medical and other areas of tourism.
Trained as a physician, Lalande, a French national, has been in Asia for the past 20 years. In 2009, he set up CEO Health in Bangkok to integrate high-end medical and tourism services for business executives in Thailand and other Asia-Pacific countries.
"It's a holistic programme of preventative medicine specially designed for CEOs, directors and other top managers," he said.
Comparable to programmes offered by world-renowned medical institutes such as the Mayo Clinic and Cleveland Clinic in the United States, the high-end medical check-ups are accompanied by tailor-made wellness experiences at some of Thailand's best hotels and resorts.
"We want to make medical check-ups enjoyable so that CEOs and other executives will come back (for the next scheduled check-up)
"Based on my experience, 60 per cent of medical problems are heart and related ailments. In many cases, there are no initial symptoms, yet these problems are preventable.
"Our five-test programme gives a five-year perspective on the heart profile in terms of arteries and biological markers of inflammation. We also do stress echocardiography, ankle-brachial index, calcium score or CT scan, as well as carotids ultrasound.
"We also aim to be an ethical medical outsourcer by capitalising on my extensive relationships with doctors in the region, as I spent 10 years working in Thailand and another 13 years in the Philippines.
"Medical tourism as we know it doesn't work in my opinion, because health problems are too serious to be handled by travel agencies who organise those medical tourism packages.
"For example, some Europeans have been advised to fix their hip problem in Asia (due to cheaper cost and greater availability of service) but they often end up with the wrong specialists.
"Our firm aims to get the patients to the right doctors, and we have the knowledge regarding who are the right doctors for this or that specific case.
"Another example is Parkinson's disease. In Thailand, there are probably just 10 to 15 specialists in this field, so clients will benefit from our network of relationships with top-class medical personnel.
"In my opinion, medical tourism has been driven by the long queue in developed countries. If you're an Australian, you may have to wait for a year for a hip replacement. If you come to Thailand, the waiting time may be just three months. Secondly, the price here is lower and the quality is high due to the availability of well-trained doctors.
"In fact, the quality of high-end medical services in Bangkok is now comparable to that of Hong Kong or Singapore.
"Many expatriates also like to return to Bangkok for medical services because there is less competition among doctors here, so they tend to know their professional limitations as far as doctors' referrals are concerned. This is good for patients.
"Besides medical check-ups, our programme includes relaxation and holidays, as we believe in the quality of life as a key factor for good health, so we have partnerships with the best hospitals as well as hotels and resorts, to provide a combined package starting from US$6,200," he says.