Ken Poonoosamy, MD, Board of Investment (BOI), Mauritius outlines their strategies to attract investments in healthcare by positioning Mauritius as a hub for medical tourism, in an exclusive interview with Viveka Roychowdhury
What has been Mauritius strategy in terms of choosing focus sectors to attract and facilitate investment?
The Board of Investment (BOI) has a very important role of promoting and facilitating investment in Mauritius. BOI has a focused strategy, targeting foreign investors in high value-added and innovation-driven sectors. While maintaining its marketing effort in the traditional source countries of FDI, BOI is putting additional resources to tap the markets in Asia and Africa. One of the sectors where significant emphasis is being placed is the healthcare sector.
Why has healthcare/ medical tourism been chosen as a key target sector by the BOI?
Today, Mauritius has the potential to transform itself into a medical hub for the region. Not only can we provide the latest advanced medical procedures and treatments to our local citizens but we are also well poised to become a destination for medical tourism. Nearly half of the foreign patients visiting the island in the past years originated from the Indian Ocean islands, namely, Madagascar, Reunion Island, Seychelles and Comoros. European countries, including France and UK, made up for more than 20 per cent of the arrivals while the remainder consisted of patients from India, South Africa, the Middle East and other countries. With its strategic location at crossroads of Africa, Middle East and Asia, Mauritius is now positioning itself as a leading provider of medical care to foreign patients.
Who were the early movers/ believers in Mauritius as a medical tourism destination and which are the major hospital chains with a base in your country today?
The major hospital chains include Fortis Clinique Darné (a JV between Fortis Healthcare, India and Mauritian Industrial Group CIEL), Apollo Bramwell Hospital (a subsidiary of the British American Investment Group, a leading private conglomerate in Mauritius and the Chennai – based Apollo Group of Hospitals), Dr Agarwal’s Eye Hospital Limited and Metropolis Mauritius (JV between Metropolis Healthcare and Bramser Lab Services) which provides clinical laboratory infrastructure and support services to locally registered clinical pathology practice. Other main healthcare providers include Centre Esthetique de L’Ocean Indien (specialised in cosmetic medicine and hair crafting), Dentcare (specialised in dentistry), Harley Street Fertility Centre (specialised in fertility treatment) and Les Mariannes (specialised in rehabilitative medicine).
How much of Mauritius’ GDP comes from medical tourism? How has it grown over the years and what is the target?
The contribution to GDP by the human health and social work activities has increased constantly over the past few years. It is expected to contribute around 4.4 per cent of the GDP in 2014. The BOI conducts an annual survey of private healthcare providers which reveals that the number of foreign patients travelling to Mauritius for treatment has steadily increased over the recent years.
How is this segment regulated in Mauritius in terms of fair pricing, adherence to international guidelines etc.?
The medical services provided in public healthcare institutions are free to the Mauritian population. Cost of procedures in the private sector are not regulated but are usually lower than that practised in Europe or some countries in the region for e.g. cost of cardiac procedures in Mauritius cost around 50 – 60 per cent less than that practised in private clinic in UK. An increasing number of the local population has medical insurance cover and hence have recourse to private clinics for medical treatment. There is no difference in fees charged for local and foreign patients. Furthermore, medical insurance providers have worked on a scale of cost document regarding the fees charged by a private surgeon which the latter is recommended to abide to. The scale of costs gives an indication of the fees to be charged by private surgeons for specific procedures carried out in private clinics.
How many patients come to Mauritius for treatment and what is the trend in terms of major origin countries, treatment areas, etc.?
In 2014, the projected number of foreign patients travelling to Mauritius for treatment is estimated to be around 15, 000. Out of the 15,000 foreign patients, around 65 per cent is expected to come for outpatient treatment and around 35 per cent for inpatient treatment. The average spent per foreign patient is around MUR 15,000 per patient. Foreign patients are travelling to Mauritius to seek medical treatment in niche areas which include cardiology, ophthalmology, orthopaedics, cosmetic surgery and procedures, fertility treatments, dentistry, hair crafting, stem cell treatment, amongst others.
Mauritius is been known as a premium tourism destination. Is the focus on the premium medical tourism segment?
Mauritius is known internationally as a high end tourism destination. The opening of the economy has attracted flagship healthcare providers to Mauritius namely, Apollo Hospitals, Agarwal Eye Hospital and Fortis Healthcare. The presence of such prestigious names has positioned Mauritius as a destination for medical tourism.
Furthermore, the BOI organises targeted export of services missions to promote medical tourism in neighbouring African countries with the participation of the Mauritian private healthcare sector. These missions are ideal platforms for local private healthcare providers to interact with their African counterparts and also enable them to showcase their services to countries in the region. The objective is to attract further foreign patients to Mauritius.
Private operators have also enlarged their activity base and have invested on the African continent. Fortis group has invested in International Hospital Kampala (IHK), Uganda and Agarwal Eye Hospital has invested in facilities in Mozambique, Madagascar and Seychelles. Further expansion projects from other operators are expected to materialise in the coming months.
Mauritius also has a talented pool of healthcare professionals which are classified below (as at 2013):
- 16.2 doctors per 10,000 population
- 2.8 dentists per 10,000 population
- 3.7 pharmacists per 10,000 population
- 30.8 qualified nurses and midwives per 10,000 population
Government has always shown a strong commitment to encourage the development of the healthcare sector and hence has put in place an enabling legal and regulatory framework for medical services whereby the Ministry of Health and Quality of Life regulates all activities pertaining to private and public healthcare services. The Private Health Institutions Act provides the guidelines which private operators have to abide to operate according to international norms and conditions.
The Medical and the Dental councils regulate all activities related to medical practice in Mauritius. The Medical Council Act and the Dental Council Act require that local and foreign medical practitioners must be registered with their respective councils prior to start practice. The Traditional and Alternative Medicine Board under the Ministry of Health regulates all activities pertaining to traditional and alternative medicine namely, Ayurveda, Chinese traditional medicine, acupuncture amongst others.
Some treatments require longer stays for recuperation. What are some of the features offered as part of tie ups between hospitals and hotels?
Private hospitals and clinics work in close collaboration with hotels to provide a full health package to foreign patients which include medical procedures, accommodation, airport transfers amongst others.
How has this impacted access to healthcare for the local population?
This has positively impacted on access to healthcare, for instance, Mauritius private healthcare sector can now boast to have state-of-the-art facilities and qualified personnel to cater for the growing healthcare needs of the island and the region. Mauritius is slowly crafting a solid reputation as medical tourism destination.
The standard of healthcare delivery has significantly improved. Mauritians are travelling less for high end medical services such as specialised retinal surgeries, cardiac electrophysiology procedures amongst others.
The JCI accreditation of Apollo Bramwell Hospital in 2013 is an example of clear cut efforts being made by private healthcare providers to enhance the quality of healthcare services provided to Mauritian citizens and foreign patients.