Wellness sector to attract medical tourists

Although Cebu's hospitals are not yet ready to accommodate the medical tourism market, Cebu is banking on the wellness sector to develop a market niche and capture a sizeable chunk of this dollar-earning industry.

Department of Tourism (DOT-7) regional director Patria Aurora Roa said cosmetics, spa, dental, and surgery services will be Cebu's edge in attracting the medical tourism market, while hospitals work on their insurance affiliation problems.

"In the wellness sector we are already established," Roa said adding that vanity services could be Cebu's pre-attraction tool to lure foreign medical tourists.

Roa said the competition in attracting the growing medical tourist is very tough, Cebu as a potential destination should not wait for its hospitals to adopt international requirements, but instead find its way to immediately capture this emerging economic-booster.

According to Roa, vanity services here are cheaper than those in other countries, and these kinds of services do not need insurance affiliation, or whatever international requirements, Cebu should better position itself as a wellness destination, becoming a medical tourism destination on the other hand, is a long term bid.

She said Cebu is already known especially by Japanese women and domestic travelers as a wellness destination. Medical tourism market is not only composed of individuals seeking medical attention, but also significant percentage of which are those seeking for cheaper charge in vanity services such as cosmetic surgery, dental, and other cosmetology services.

Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Cebu Province office, provincial director Nelia F. Navarro echoed Roa's statement, saying Cebu is now on a better position to banner as a wellness destination, as the full medical tourism facilities are not yet in place.

Navarro said the Spa sector in Cebu is already world-class, with the existence of Chi Spa Village in Shangri-La, which is the largest Spa facility of the Shangri-La chain in Asia.

Roa hopes that more and more travel operators can include Cebu's wellness and vanity services as one of the major parts of tourists' itinerary in Cebu travel experience.

Aside from good service quality in the wellness industry in Cebu, Roa said lower charging rate, and the general good experience of a tourists can be a major come on.

Aside from the confidence expressed by these government agencies in pushing Cebu as an international contender in wellness services as part of the Medical Tourism efforts, the private sector is also on the same perspective.

The Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) had been pushing Cebu to strengthen its position as a legitimate wellness destination in the world. In fact, the chamber had institutionalized its annual Wellness Exhibition.

Like Thailand, and other countries in Asia, wherein wellness sectors are heavily supported by government and private sectors, CCCI will initiate the creation of Cebu's wellness sector so that Cebu can take off as one of the world's preferred wellness destinations.

CCCI, which has been actively promoting the tourism development for Cebu, is now heading to strengthen the support services in tourism and the Wellness industry is the sector that needs wide promotion both in domestic and international markets.

Initially, CCCI initiated to organize the Spa and Wellness industry organization, the Spa and Wellness Association of Cebu (SWAC) headed by Spa chain owner Johnnie Lim.