President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo leads the groundbreaking ceremony for the Bali International Hospital on Dec 27, 2021. -Cabinet Secretariat of the Republic of Indonesia
JAKARTA (The Jakarta Post/Asia News Network): The Mayo Clinic, a United States-based medical nonprofit, has said it is strictly serving as a consultant for the development of the Bali International Hospital and has no part in running the government-supported healthcare facility intended to encourage Indonesian patients to seek advanced care domestically.
Royston Lek, the Mayo Clinic International’s executive director for the Asia-Pacific region, told The Jakarta Post the hospital was providing strategic advice and acting as a clinical knowledge partner for its Indonesian counterpart.
“We’re not running it,” Lek said in an interview on Thursday (March 16). He did not rule out the possibility of more collaboration in the future.
“Pertamina Central Hospital [RSPP] is part of the Mayo Clinic Care Network, but obviously Bali International Hospital will become our partner in the future, but we’re currently just doing a consultation with them,” he said separately.
The Bali International Hospital will be operated by state-owned hospital holding company PT Pertamedika Indonesia Health Care Corporation. The medical centre is set to open in the Sanur special economic zone (SEZ) of Bali in mid-2023, after a year of construction, alongside nearby premium resorts, hotels and care homes.
Sanur is one of three locations where the government is planning to build new international-standard hospitals, with the others in Jakarta and Medan.
Bloomberg reported in December 2021 that the Bali International Hospital would be run in partnership with the Mayo Clinic.
The partnership was to include bringing its brand and medical practices to Indonesia, said Agus Ihwayudi, the project manager of the hospital, in October of last year.
Mira Dyah Wahyuni, the president director of Pertamina Bina Medika Indonesia Healthcare Corporation, said the Mayo Clinic’s involvement would only extend to assisting in the establishment of the hospital and serving as a medical consultant in areas such as human capital, permits and healthcare equipment.
“Later on, Mayo Clinic will participate in an upskilling programme for Bali International Hospital’s operational purposes,” she told the Post on Friday.
Mira said the hospital would need 60 specialists, 19 general practitioners, 104 nurses, 73 supporting medical personnel and 78 non-medical personnel, which it would source by hiring local health workers, as well as medical professionals from the Indonesian diaspora.
The plan is part of a government scheme to reduce the number of citizens seeking treatment abroad and to redirect billions of dollars in annual medical spending to the domestic healthcare sector.
The government estimates that some two million Indonesians seek treatment abroad annually, in countries such as Singapore, Malaysia, Japan and the US, which it says results in Rp 97 trillion (US$6.3 billion) in foreign exchange losses annually.
