MTA successfully completed a first-ever Asia Pacific Medical Tourism Congress in Seoul, Korea that was attended by 800+ participants. Thereafter, MTA participated in a medical travel conference. Where will we go from here?
The European Medical Travel Conference (EMTC) was held in Treviso, Italy on May 5-7, 2010. Jointly hosted by the Ministry of Health and Tourism of the region of Veneto, the conference was organized to discuss cross-border healthcare issues.
Two workshops focused on networking and marketing for hospitals and insurers; followed by presentations on quality, patient mobility, IT facilitation and niche marketing were covered during the two-day conference proceedings. Information on Italy’s medical and health care capabilities was provided along with site visits to Casa di Cura Giovanni XXIII, Abano Terme, and Ospedale Motta. These site visits and another highlights of the conference included the Gala Dinner in Venice.
MTA’s delegation at EMTC included Renee Stephano, President; Vivian Ho, Chief Development Officer; Dr. Prem Jagyasi, Chief Strategy Officer; Jessica Johnson, Director – Operations; and Gabriella Vicuña, Director – Programs. MTA participated in exhibiting, engaging in networking meetings, and as a panelist on the medical tourism associations session on Day 1 of the conference.
The panel consisted of short presentations by existing associations and a dialogue on the need for a global umbrella organization on medical tourism. Vivian Ho presented information about MTA’s conference programs, educational activities, networking opportunities, country site visits, and health cluster development around the world. The eight industry participants in the session discussed current activities in the geographical regions, challenges, membership networks during the three hour time block and concluded there was no need for any further actions or an umbrella organization.
As a leader in the industry, MTA has 9 representative offices in Asia Pacific, Europe, Latin America, Middle East and North America regions. MTA has a wide range of active and ongoing collaborations across the medical and health tourism industry around the world. We currently work with other associations and will continue to collaborate widely in the best interests of the industry’s development.
About the Author
Sarah Martin is the Global Communications Director for the Medical Tourism Association and is also a Contributing Editor for both Medical Tourism Magazine and Health Tourism Magazine, as well as a regular author for both publications. Although being new to this industry, she is passionate about the idea of a global network of healthcare facilities and professionals and is excited for the future to unfold in this dynamic environment. She can be contacted at Sarah@medicaltourismassociation.com.
