Saturday July 4, 2009

Healthcare business on the rise

AT YOUR SERVICE
By TAN SRI DR ISMAIL MERICAN
DIRECTOR-GENERAL OF THE HEALTH MINISTRY

The future poses challenges which include a changing disease pattern, a well-informed and demanding public, rising costs, new medical technologies, globalisation and liberalisation.

THE “business of health” is peculiar and it is probably going to be the largest industry in the world today.

The industry offers immense potential for health benefits such as services and products, drugs and vaccines and new technologies.

Access to healthcare and their effectiveness to meet the needs of the population depend on two important factors – how healthcare is organised and delivered and what type of medical technology is used to make the delivery more efficient.

Since the 1980s, our healthcare service has transformed into a two-tiered parallel system with a sizeable and thriving private sector.

We plan to make further improvements by making people the priority in healthcare.

The last five years have seen the development of newer tertiary centres with integrated computerised systems and state-of-the-art equipment.

Despite the rapid growth in public and private healthcare expenditures, the Government remains committed to providing equitable, accessible and affordable healthcare for all Malaysians.

A comprehensive range of services covering preventive, curative, dental and pharmacy continues to be provided at highly-subsidised rates. Charges for healthcare services have remained nominal even though the total health spending has been increasing steadily.

Careful planning and development efforts have enabled the country to progress through various phases of modernisation, in line with changing demographics, socio-economic and technological challenges.

Compared with countries with similar socio-economic status, Malaysia has done remarkably well in providing healthcare while spending only 4.7% of GDP on health.

Despite such a low level of national investment on healthcare, we have achieved laudable health outcomes. Imagine what we can achieve if we are able to spend more.

Data compiled by the World Health Organisation (WHO) has shown that our overall public health performance is remarkably good.

The future poses challenges which include a changing disease pattern, a well-informed and demanding public, rising costs of healthcare, new medical technologies, globalisation and liberalisation.

We aim to be more people- focused and competitive and be able to flourish in a global economy.

To meet the increasing expectations of customers for quality services, public and private hospitals are continuously being assessed against professionally-determined standards of care.

Many of our hospital have achieved international accreditation.

Health is an indirect investment to the economy of the country.

As such, it must now be business unusual in our delivery of services. Patients’ safety is another key area of focus for the Ministry of Health.

The increasing complexity of healthcare, coupled with the various types and levels of healthcare providers and the use of complex technologies may occasionally infringe on patient safety.

International concerns for patient safety have led to the establishment of the World Alliance for Patient Safety by the WHO, which has called for worldwide action to enhance patient safety.

Malaysia is a signatory to the World Alliance for Patient Safety in May 2005 and the ministry is committed to making the Malaysian healthcare system safer.

Future health reforms will enhance the seamlessness of care from primary to hospital care.

Currently, consumers have open access to doctors at the level of clinics and hospitals in the public and private sectors.

An important factor is the need for integrated medical and health records to ensure continuity of care.

The introduction of the Teleprimary Care pilot project in Sarawak, Johor and Perlis has improved accessibility to medical care.

Through this initiative, villagers can receive specialised care.

Today, Malaysians can easily obtain answers to their medical problems by just clicking through the Internet or by making a phone call.

The ministry is serious in improving the people’s access to care. It is taking bold steps to reduce waiting time at outpatient clinics by monitoring and mobilising current resources and ensuring promptness of care at the accident and emergency departments.

Other people-centred services include reducing the waiting time for patients to collect their medication at outpatient pharmacies.

In selected hospitals, the collection of medication at designated counters can be done by making prior arrangements through SMS, the telephone, the facsimile or e-mail.

Extending the opening hours of counters have been carried out in some hospitals.

A “drive-through” pharmacy aimed at reducing congestion at pharmacy counters is being tested in Penang.

In line with strategies outlined in the third industrial master plan, the Government has set up the health industry section under the ministry to nurture the development and promotion of healthcare including health tourism.

The ministry will soon launch “Malaysia Healthcare” as part of its branding exercise to promote the country as a choice destination for international medical care.

The ministry, in collaboration with several government agencies undertakes programmes and activities to promote the local health industry overseas via specialised marketing missions for healthcare products in targeted countries in Asean, the Middle East and Europe.

To reduce bureaucracy and increase efficiency, the ministry has introduced simplified forms, online paperless applications and set up one-stop centres to facilitate transactions.

These include licensing, permits and approvals.

Rising healthcare costs is one reason that has prompted many countries to apply business practices to medicine with the hope of improving efficiency, controlling expenditure and enhancing quality, and in the process, improving competitiveness.

However, the “business mindset” must not compromise healthcare delivery.

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