Taiwan eyes Vietnamese healthcare sector

Representatives of the Taiwanese healthcare sector visited Taiwan Expo 2017 to promote cooperation

Angela Chang, manager of the Taiwan External Trade Development Council, said that most state hospitals in Vietnam are overcrowded, which leads to long waiting times, a shortage of beds, and increased risk of cross-infection among patients.

Over the past two years, more than 2,000 Vietnamese patients have travelled to Taiwan to seek treatment. The number of Vietnamese patients, most of whom seek treatment for cancers and rare diseases in Taiwan, has increased dramatically.

Taiwan is an emerging destination for Vietnamese patients besides Singapore and Thailand. Taiwan is known for qualified medical services with affordable costs, going for roughly one-fifth of the cost of healthcare in the US and Europe. There are over 17 JCI-accredited healthcare centres and hospital in Taiwan.

In addition, Taiwan has integrated technology innovations into healthcare systems to reduce patient waiting time and improve treatment quality. Some initiatives include intelligent disaster-prevention information system and remote healthcare model.

“Taiwan wants to export these solutions to overseas markets like Vietnam. Also, we are looking to tighten partnership between Taiwan and Vietnam to improve local healthcare services,” she said.

To facilitate the goal, a delegation of 13 Taiwanese companies in the field of healthcare and medical equipment have visited Vietnam to showcase their state-of-the-art healthcare equipment and solutions at Taiwan Expo 2017. Some notable companies in the event are UNITECH Electronics, Energy On Things, Sofiva Genomics and, Netown.

Nguyen Thi Loan, talking about her experiences in Taiwan

In addition, the delegation also holds a seminar titled “Miracles in Taiwanese Healthcare” to provide an insight into the Taiwanese healthcare sector. The seminar invited Vietnamese patient Nguyen Thi Loan, who was successfully treated for her rare disease in Taiwan.

Moreover, the delegation also visited Taiwanese hospital Shing Mark in the southern province of Dong Nai. The newly-established hospital has around 180 beds for patients and is slated to reach the full capacity of 2,000 beds by 2020. The hospital is expected to tighten partnership between Vietnam and Taiwan in the healthcare sector.

On this occasion, UNITECH LIGcare granted a smart healthcare system to Shing Mark hospital to improve the experience of Vietnamese patients.

Chang noted that this is the fourth time they visited Vietnam to explore the market. Most firms are looking for local partners and distributors to supply healthcare solutions and equipment.