Malaysia Wins Esteemed ‘Destination of the Year’ Title Once Again

Malaysia was recognised at the recently concluded International Medical Travel Journal (IMTJ) Medical Travel Awards 2020 by winning the highly coveted ‘Health and Medical Tourism: Destination of the Year’ title. The win enhances Malaysia’s positioning as the World’s Healthcare Marvel and reflects the steadfast commitment from relevant organisations in ensuring a dedicated continuity of care from Malaysia Healthcare amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

Taking home the highly coveted ‘Destination of the Year’ award marked the fourth time that Malaysia has claimed the title, having previously won it thrice in a row from 2015 – 2017. The results are evident in the progress of the industry whereby the country has received a total of 1.3 million healthcare travellers in 2019 as compared to 643,000 in 2011, further fortifying Malaysia’s status as a trusted destination in the eyes of the world. 

Meanwhile, Malaysia Healthcare Travel Council (MHTC) continued its winning streak by clinching an impressive fourth ‘Cluster of the Year’ award. This can be attributed to the solid public-private partnerships that have been integral to Malaysia Healthcare’s thriving growth for the past few years.

“We are immensely honoured to be bestowed with two awards by IMTJ. It is a privilege to receive the ‘Destination of the Year’ and ‘Cluster of the Year’ awards yet again as it signifies the global trust in our country’s excellent healthcare travel infrastructure and exemplary patient journey experience which have been made possible thanks to the dedication and effort from all parties. This motivates us to further improve our service delivery and to keep the Malaysia Healthcare brand flying high,” said Sherene Azli, CEO of MHTC.

Several of Malaysia’s leading private healthcare institutions also nabbed several prestigious wins at the awards:

1.            Thompson Hospital Kota Damansara– Best Quality Initiative

2.            Sunway Fertility Centre – International Fertility Clinic of the Year

3.            Prince Court Medical Centre – International Hospital of the Year

4.            Sunway Eye Centre – International Eye Clinic of the Year

As the healthcare travel industry continues to be impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, Malaysia Healthcare is proactively working on recovery plans for the industry by highlighting the nation’s abilities and strengths as a world-class quality healthcare provider. A core element is healthcare digitalisation, which enables continuity of care for patients.

“Our commitment in upholding Malaysia as the World’s Healthcare Marvel will never waver. While we work hand-in-hand with the Ministry of Health to ensure the stringent SOPs are closely followed as the safety of the public continues to be our topmost priority, we do look forward to the day when we are able to welcome healthcare travellers at full force to seek health and wellness treatments in Malaysia. Till then, we will continue to direct a more concentrated effort in driving sustainable industry growth for Malaysia to continually be recognised as the World’s Healthcare Marvel,” said Sherene.

Taking place on a virtual platform, the IMTJ Medical Travel Awards 2020 celebrates outstanding achievement in medical travel worldwide. Entries are evaluated by a panel of expert international judges: Keith Pollard, Editor-in-Chief of IMTJ; Executive Chairman of LaingBuisson, UK Chairman of the Judging Panel; Lutz Lungwitz, President of  German Medical Wellness Association, Dr Claudia Mika, CEO of TEMOS, Laszlo Puczko, Founder of Health Tourism Worldwide, and Elizabeth Ziemba, President of Medical Tourism Training among others.