Kelantan: Kelantan has begun making inroads into the medical tourism sector by targeting the Indonesian, Singaporean, and Thai markets, leveraging private specialist hospitals that offer more competitive treatment costs.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, State Tourism, Culture, Arts and Heritage Committee chairman Datuk Kamaruddin Md Noor stated that the state has initiated promotional efforts in Pekanbaru, Indonesia, and organised familiarisation visits to attract patients to seek treatment in Kelantan. Among the hospitals ready to provide such services are Universiti Sains Malaysia Specialist Hospital (HPUSM), known for its neurological expertise, and Kota Bharu Medical Centre (KBMC), which is actively increasing its bed capacity to meet demand. Although the number of international patients is still not high, arrivals from Indonesia, in particular, are showing positive growth.
Kamaruddin highlighted that Kelantan's main strength lies in the quality of its medical services, which are on par with major hospitals in other states but offered at a lower cost. He emphasized that the state government would assist in terms of promotion, while hospitals must ensure the highest standards of service and treatment, as these would be the key attractions for the state's medical tourism sector.
In a separate development, Kamaruddin mentioned that the state government has also rebranded the Tourism Information Centre (TIC) as Tourism Kelantan to better reflect the agency's broader role, beyond merely serving as an information centre. He noted that the decision was agreed upon at a state executive council meeting last week, with the new name reflecting its comprehensive functions covering tourism management, culture, and the arts.
Kamaruddin explained that TIC was previously seen only as an information centre, even though the agency also manages programmes, events, and the coordination of tourism activities. Therefore, this rebranding aims to more accurately represent its actual scope of duties. Changes to the administrative structure will be implemented in stages, including the establishment of a board and organisational restructuring.