Revolutionizing tomorrow's medical center
Parkway Holdings Limited (PHL), one of Asia's largest publicly traded healthcare companies, opened its first premium healthcare center in China, the Shanghai Gleneagles International Medical and Surgical Center, after more than one year of development.
"In recent years, we have seen a number of affluent Chinese nationals traveling to our hospitals in Singapore for medical treatment," said Dr Jonathan Seah, chief executive officer (CEO) of Shanghai Gleneagles International Medical and Surgical Center and group vice president for Parkway Holdings North Asia.
"Parkway now brings premium healthcare to them in Shanghai, through our first medical center in China," he said.
The Shanghai Gleneagles International Medical and Surgical Center is a joint venture between PHL and Shanghai Huashan Health Development Corporation.
More than $8 million has been put into medical equipment, infrastructure, information technology and training, making the center one of the largest single investments by a Singaporean company in China's healthcare services sector.
With this medical center in China, PHL intends to take the lead in enhancing the concept of modern healthcare, by bringing together world-class professional medical expertise and technology in a tranquil setting complemented by a personalized level of service found only in five-star hotels and spas.
Located in the Tomorrow Square complex within the heart of Shanghai, on Nanjing Road, its interior is fitted out with rich woods, elegant marble and plush furnishings instead of the stark clinical aesthetics conventionally found in most medical centers.
These go toward creating a premium setting for providing high-quality clinical care.
"Gleneagles Shanghai aims to provide excellent medical care for our guests in the most comfortable, private and luxurious manner possible, while ensuring we exceed or meet international medical standards," said Seah. '
"For example, even the carpeting of our consultation rooms is of medical-grade material with anti-infection technology," he said.
"We believe an experience like this is lacking in the Chinese market, and the time is right to fill that gap with the opening of the center."
The level of interior detail is further evident in the center's operating theaters (OTs), which have equipment specifications commonly seen in hospitals 10 times the size of Gleneagles Shanghai.
As with every other Parkway medical facility, Gleneagles Shanghai uses proven treatment strategies to ensure desired clinical outcomes.
The interior air quality of the OTs is controlled to 99.99 percent purity, free of bacteria.
This is critical in helping surgical wounds heal properly, especially important in plastic surgery. Similar quality standards are seen in the in-house laboratory, where imported reagents are used to ensure accurate test results.
Customized care
Gleneagles Shanghai will offer medical services in general practice and dentistry, minimally invasive surgeries of various specialties, gynecology, orthopedics, sports medicine, cosmetic plastic surgery and endoscopy.
A wide range of premium health-screening programs can be specially tailored for each guest's medical history and lifestyle.
"Our guests will undergo a careful consultation process when they sign up for our 'Total Health and Wellness program.' We then determine the health risks they may be exposed to and can tailor a preventive health program most appropriate for their lifestyle," Seah added.
Adopting this holistic approach, Gleneagles Shanghai's executive health-screening programs include consultations to enhance each guest's state of health in three additional areas - nutrition, physical fitness and mental health.
A patient enjoys warm care in Parkway. Parkway sticks to personalized service to patients. |
Taking into account the overall health-screening assessment, the nutritionists and exercise physiologists will design dietary and exercise programs for each guest to achieve optimal health and aid in disease prevention.
Psychological and behavioral evaluations, meanwhile, determine the guest's stress levels, with counseling and stress-management training provided if necessary.
In addition to having advanced medical equipment and professionals on site, the medical center is also connected to more than 1,500 doctors at their other world-renowned facilities in Singapore and other countries through a high-speed telemedicine and videoconferencing network.
The medical center is fully digital, and relevant information can be shared with ease.
The launch of the center also paves the way for PHL to fulfill its commitment to foster the exchange of medical expertise between top local Chinese doctors and the network of senior doctors at leading Asian healthcare facilities in Singapore such as Mount Elizabeth and Gleneagles hospitals.
This commitment includes training local Chinese medical personnel, which supports the Chinese government's medical reforms aimed at providing better training to its doctors, nurses and other personnel.
Gleneagles Shanghai doctors and nurses will also receive ongoing training from Parkway's healthcare education division, the Academy@Parkway, both in Shanghai and Singapore.
For more information, please visit: www.parkwayholdings.com
World Eye Reports
(China Daily 03/12/2007 page4)
