H3629C: Overview of Medical and Wellness Tourism After the 2020 Pandemic: Wellness and Medical Tourism Management Assignment, RP, Singapore

Assignment Title

Overview of Medical and Wellness Tourism after the 2020 Pandemic – Country Name

Background: With the Covid-19 situation in 2020, many companies in the medical and wellness tourism industry have been impacted significantly especially with the fall of international travel in 2020.

For example, Malaysia had big plans for its medical tourism industry in 2020. By the start of 2020, 15 000 beds were ready for the anticipated influx of international patients. The Malaysian government predicted that two million international visitors – an expected 33% rise on 2019 – would arrive for medical treatment as part of its well-promoted Year of Healthcare Travel. But in March all that came to a halt, when the Malaysian government affected lockdown to curb the growing number of Covid-19 infections. For hospitals that meant all but essential healthcare was prohibited. With international borders closing all over the world, it was a major blow to Malaysia’s medical tourism dream.

Across the world, it’s a similar story. The medical tourism market, worth up to $87.5 billion (£70 billion, €77 billion) annually, is expected to shrink until 2021 as patients avoid unnecessary travel. At Bumrungrad International Hospital in Thailand, where half of the patients come from overseas, experts are predicting a 28% drop in revenues by the end of 2020. But Malaysia hopes that strong government support for the private healthcare industry, coupled with its swift and strict response to the pandemic, could pave the way for a far quicker recovery in Malaysia than elsewhere.

Yet Asia’s relative success in containing the virus means it could recover faster than other regions. “Countries in Southeast Asia that have kept the infection rates very low will definitely present themselves as Covid-safe destinations,” says Gary Bowerman, an independent travel analyst specializing in Asia. “Success in suppressing the virus, and very importantly  implementing and maintaining rigorous testing and tracing is already proving important in tourism promotion and decision making.”

You are required to choose and analyze one(1) destination from the list below and answer all the questions listed.

Select any ONE(1) of the following countries that offer wellness and medical tourism and answer all the questions below in your coursework assessment:

• Singapore
• Korea
• India
• Thailand

Assignment Objectives

This assignment requires you to research, analyze, and make recommendations on the following:

The impact of Covid-19 on the selected destination and how the key stakeholders are coping or adapting to the current challenges.

• Recommend measures that selected medical tourism companies can take to attract a new segment of medical or wellness travelers which will enhance the current range of services and facilities as well as continue to position the company’s market leadership in the Wellness and Tourism Industry.
• Recommend how wellness tourism companies can work together with medical tourism companies to improve their overall business based on their marketing strategy.
• You are required to conduct research via the internet and to use your student resources to write your report. Where appropriate, you are required to show evidence using tables, diagrams articles, etc. in your submission of the assignment in the appendix.

In this analysis, you need to apply the concepts learned from lesson 1 to 17on Medical and Wellness Tourism.

1. Country Impact Explain how any THREE (3) of the factors of PESTLE can impact the success of your chosen country with regards to Medical and Wellness Tourism.

2. List TWO (2) PUSH factors and TWO (2) PULL factors that have led medical tourists to leave their country of residence to seek medical treatments in your chosen country.

3. Company Recommends ONE (1) major company in the medical tourism industry that will help to position the company as a potential medical tourism leader.

4. Discuss how the company can maximize TWO (2) of its strengths and TWO (2) opportunities available to address their challenges to be the leading company in medical tourism

5. Explain which TWO (2) key market segments to focus on for the company to be successful. Justify your answer. Partner wellness company except for hotel and resorts

6. Recommend ONE (1) partner wellness company that the Company can work with to send their post-treatment medical tourist to as secondary wellness tourist.

7. Justify your answer. Recommend TWO (2) facilities and/or activities by partner wellness company to attract these market segment of Medical Tourism travelers to their wellness company. Wellness tourism program for hotel/resort.

8. Recommend TWO (2) new market segments to attract the Primary wellness market to your choice hotel/resort in order for their Wellness tourism program to be successful post-Covid-19.

9. List TWO (2) current initiatives of wellness programs that can contribute to an increase in wellness tourists for that hotel in 2021. Explain with THREE (3) Ps of marketing to promote the hotel/resort company to this new segment of wellness tourists.

10. Elaborate with TWO (2) examples of how you can incorporate the authentic local elements into your wellness program.

11. Explain with ONE (1) example what changes you can recommend to the Hotel operations to address the challenges post-Covid.