KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 11 – Following the opening of borders in April last year, the medical tourism industry has recorded RM726 million of revenue as of Q3 2022, and is on the way to achieving its RM1 billion target for 2022. The sector has been projected to bring in RM2 billion annual revenue in 2025.
In line with these projections, the purpose-built township KL Wellness City (KLWC) aims to drive medical tourism in Malaysia through its vision of a 360-degree wellness hub centred around its township, which encompasses all aspects of medical care, health, wellness, fitness, and business, complete with residential, retail, and commercial offerings.
KL Wellness City managing director Dr Colin Lee said: “The Healthcare Travel Industry Blueprint 2021-2025 by the Malaysia Healthcare Travel Council has identified that ‘Step down, rehab and wellness development for health care travel’ is one of the critical touchpoints that require key improvements.
“KLWC is a city dedicated to health care and wellness living at its core. As the first real estate development in Southeast Asia to pioneer a comprehensive ecosystem of health care and wellness-centric living, KLWC is targeted to become a hub for local and international medical tourism.
“For tourists and local visitors, KLWC will position Malaysia as the ideal location in the Southeast Asia region to travel and visit, in addition to indulging in an environment of the best health care and wellness facilities designed for better living.”
Spanning over 26.49 acres, KL Wellness City is 45 minutes away from Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA), and is a complete health care travel ecosystem anchored with the Nobel Healthcare Park, the International Tertiary Hospital, 379 medical specialist suites, retirement resorts for independent and assisted living, a health care mall, residential units, commercial shop lots offering health and fitness-centric retail, as well as food and beverage outlets, a Multimedia Super Corridor-designated office space, and a central park.
Located in the heart of Bukit Jalil, the Nobel Healthcare Park, which consists of the medical, business, wellness, and retail suites, has a fully connected ecosystem of specialists and ancillary medical services interlinked with the adjacent International Hospital @ KL Wellness City, approved as a tertiary hospital with 624 beds and scalable to 1,000-bed capacity.
“Malaysia has been receiving medical tourists from various countries, including Indonesia, Singapore, Australia and China, for its affordable and good health care.
“In terms of medical tourism, the wellness suites cater for patients who are in step-down care — those who have been discharged from hospital but are still recovering and may require assistance such as daily physiotherapy or rehabilitation.
“The suites also cater to the families of medical tourists, who require accommodation closer to the patients and to various medical professional, amenities and facilities when required, particularly The International Tertiary Hospital,” said Dr Lee.
He added that the International Tertiary Hospital aims to be the most well-equipped and modern hospital in the region across areas including cardiology, spine health, neuro health, sports medicine, cosmetic surgery, and fertility, with research and development (R&D) laboratories and facilities for clinical studies across a variety of fields equipped with cutting-edge technology.
“Malaysia has a history of being one of the best locations for medical tourism and leveraging on that, the Nobel Healthcare Park, is more than just its services — it is part of the KLWC ecosystem that covers the aspects of health care, including acute medical care, emergency care, wellness, and fitness in addition to cultivating a lifestyle that is health-centric for its residents and medical professionals.
“Since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, there is a need to live healthily among people. KLWC was conceptualised around the idea of healthy living.
“As the first-of-its-kind medical and wellness hub, the Nobel Healthcare Park is set to reinvent the way medical professionals operate and manage their practices, as well as the way people live and reside, incorporating a sense of longevity and wellness in their everyday lives. We share the ambition to make Malaysia the undisputed destination for medical tourism, as well as setting a new benchmark for hospitality, living and medical care through KLWC,” Lee concluded.
