Medical Construction & Design (MCD) is the industry's leading source for news and information and reaches all disciplines involved in the healthcare construction and design process.
Issue link: https://mcdmag.epubxp.com/i/795594
28 Medical Construction & Design | M A RCH /A PR IL 2017 | MCDM AG.COM While funding, utilization rates and strategies for growth vary across the heath industry, a growing cohort of healthcare clients in the Middle East, Asia and India are benchmarking with leading healthcare institutions in North America, Western Europe and Australia. Clients with facilities in these areas historically had a narrow focus to address "the big three" of shortages: beds, skilled clinical staff and medical technologies. Today the confl uence of a progressively competitive marketplace and globaliza- tion is resulting in an increasing number of discerning patients and providers seek- ing value from health systems in these international geographies. The industry is experiencing a shift as global clients with facilities in these nations are instructing healthcare designers to place equal em- phasis on patient experience, clinical care, quality, safety and revenue capture. The shift is infl uenced by several drivers: DRIVER 1: Globalized consumers The global spread of modern technology and connectivity is empowering patients and providers with information about healthcare options in their own country and abroad. In many instances, high net worth health consumers in the Gulf Cooperation Council of Arabic States — or GCC — in the Middle East, Asia and India are travel- ing to other countries for care. DRIVER 2: High patient-to- doctor ratios These geographies have historically had limited resources to commit to individual patients compared to North America, Western Europe and Australia, causing inherent pressure on care systems and quality outcomes. Although many urban centers have substantial healthcare facilities in operation or construction, access to care is not equitably distributed within these nations. DRIVER 3: Skilled clinician and staff shortages Addressing capacity, distribution and technology requires the corollary of placing adequate healthcare providers to operate new and expanding facilities in the Middle East, Asia and India. There has been an increased focused on recruitment and retention in parallel with expanding in-country capacity of graduate and post- graduate medical training curricula. In addition, affi liation with global healthcare providers is an approach many systems are employing in the GCC to manage shortages through providing onsite staff , telemedicine and/or specialty clinical training. Today's drivers infl uencing healthcare design in the Middle East, Asia and India BY C. CARSON SHEARON Photos: CannonDesign AROUND THE GLOBE ISSUE FOCUS EMERGING GLOBAL TRENDS 1.1M+ Number of patients treated per year (outpatient and inpatient) at Bumrungrad International Hospital — bumrungrad.com 520,000 International patient visitors per year at Bumrungrad International Hospital — bumrungrad.com