The Manila Doctors Hospital (MDH) is going beyond the conventional definition of a hospital, with all its sterile surroundings, by offering both comfort and care to its patients.

Under its transformation, MDH offers services found in most hotels to its patients, including wellness packages that combine health checkups.

“We are making great efforts to attract more doctors, and when you say hotelization, we are trying to make the hospital look like a hotel with all the convenience of a place for vacation,” MDH Medical Director Dr. Albert Roxas explained.

“When patients come in, we have personnel there who will guide them [and] navigate the hospital because they can get lost. We have people there helping them go where they want to go,” Roxas added.

According to Roxas, the initiative focuses on patient comfort and amenities to enhance the overall hospital experience, potentially extending to room amenities and relaxation facilities.

The hospital director cited Thailand, which has established itself as a leading destination for medical tourism.

The country’s neighbor has built a reputation for excellent medical care. This, coupled with its established tourism infrastructure, makes it a popular choice for patients who seek treatments such as surgery, dental work, and wellness programs in a relaxed environment.

Health consciousness growing

Roxas, former dean of the University of the Philippines Manila College of Medicine, said the hotelization concept is part of MDH’s strategy to attract more patients.

Meanwhile, Roxas said MDH has so-called patient navigators to help VIP patients through their stay in the hospital, such as where their laboratory examinations or imaging procedures will be done.

Roxas said MDH is undergoing renovation, especially on the United Nations (UN) Avenue part of the hospital, to make it look like a hotel.

“In a few months, it will be done. We want to have a very nice-looking facade,” he added.

“If you have a very nice facility, patients like to go to your hospital,” he explained.

Established in 1956, MDH is located in Ermita, Manila. The tertiary hospital currently has 500 beds. Among its most notable services are cardiovascular checks and heart surgery.

Thrust keys in hotel partnership

In September 2023, MDH partnered with eco-luxury medical wellness resort The Farm at San Benito to provide a one-of-a-kind health and wellness package to its patients, corporate clients and medical tourists.

The partnership includes the bundled health and wellness package of MDH called the Recharge International Wellness Package where patients and medical tourists alike will experience holistic wellness with a comprehensive executive check-up (ECU) at MDH’s The Wellness Hub followed by an overnight stay at The Farm at San Benito and Sofitel Philippine Plaza Manila, and two-night stay at The Manila Hotel, Club Balai Isabel, Nurture Wellness Village, Crimson Hotel Alabang, and Bellevue Hotel.

The ECU package includes a whole body scan (bone/fat scan), coronary calcium scoring, treadmill exercise stress echo, physical examination, laboratory tests including CBC with platelet count, lipid profile, uric acid, 2D echo, urinalysis, mammogram or breast ultrasound for females, prostate-specific antigen-IRMA for males, PAP smear for females, whole abdomen (male and female), life coaching, nutrition counseling and post-consultation.

Emerging center

The country is positioning itself as an emerging medical and wellness tourism destination.

“We are giving the Philippines a fighting chance at becoming a tourism powerhouse in Asia and we recognize that medical and wellness tourism hold one of the keys to this endeavor because we have the skill, the facilities, and a government willing to adjust policies to ensure that the climate for medical tourism thrives,” Tourism Secretary Christina Frasco said in one of her speeches.

According to the Department of Tourism, the Philippines has 23 health facilities internationally accredited and recognized by the International Society for Quality in Health Care.

In terms of ease of access to care, there are 63 private hospitals close to four international airports, and there is almost no waiting time for appointments and treatment.

According to Frasco, these, along with the Philippines’ cost of treatments, are competitively lower compared to Western countries and other countries within Asia.

“I’ve always heard a positive story about a Filipino worker abroad, and mostly it’s about doctors, nurses and caregivers, stories from foreigners who have felt the compassion, the care, the commitment to duty, and the willingness to go the extra mile to help those in need,” she added.

“That diaspora is very well-replicated in all our medical personnel here in the Philippines, wherever you may find yourself in our over 7,000 islands, and that is why we are very confident in pitching for the Philippines as the next emerging medical tourism and wellness destination in Asia.”