(Yicai) March 30 -- China’s southern Guangdong province has given the green light to the first group of 25 hospitals that will pilot international medical services.

The hospitals, most of which are located in the Pearl River Delta region, include well-known public hospitals, reputable traditional Chinese medicine hospitals, and high-quality private hospitals, Guangdong’s provincial government announced at a press conference on March 27.

The international medical services are limited to patients with international commercial insurance and those who pay out of pocket, as they cannot be refunded by China’s basic medical insurance scheme. Hospitals will be left to decide their own pricing for international services.

The resources for each participating hospital’s core and international services must be be kept separate. Doctors will first beed to fulfill their regular outpatient quotas before taking on work in the international division.

The number of foreign nationals seeking medical treatment in Guangdong jumped by more than 20 percent last year, while demand for inpatient services surged 76 percent, local health officials said at the press briefing.

Fosun Chancheng International Medical Center, which is affiliated with Foshan Fosun Chancheng Hospital, one of the 25 pilot hospitals, opened on March 28. FFCH is the flagship medical asset of Fosun International, a Shanghai-based conglomerate with major healthcare and pharmaceutical operations.

Providing international medical services presents both opportunities and challenges, Huang Jian, director of urology at Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University -- which is also among the pilot institutions -- said at a roundtable held to mark FIMC’s opening.

Chinese hospitals need to better promote their medical capabilities globally, particularly in developing markets, while offering tailored services to meet the varied needs of patients from different countries and regions, Huang said.

Improvements Needed

“We’re confident in China’s medical sector both in terms of medical quality or cost-effectiveness,” said Xu Zhiwei, director of the international department of the Pancreatic Disease Center at Ruijin Hospital, which is affiliated with Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine. The latter is participating in the Pancreatic Disease Collaborative Treatment Center at FFCH.

However, attracting international patients to China will require further improvements in service quality, Xu added.

FFCH has been building out its international medical services for six years and has treated more than 20,000 overseas patients from 124 countries and regions over the past three years. FIMC integrates outpatient care, inpatient services, medical check-ups, and rehabilitation, enabling it to deliver end-to-end care for international patients.

To attract more overseas patients, FFCH has set up offices in countries such as Bangladesh and Indonesia, Chairman Hu Hang told Yicai.

It has also created fast-track diagnosis and treatment channels with several leading medical institutions in Hong Kong. Thirteen Hong Kong-licensed physicians have been approved for short-term practice at FFCH, Hu said, adding that regular multidisciplinary consultations between Chinese and US medical institutions are in place.

The international medical business faces hurdles, including differing payment standards between domestic and overseas markets and inconsistencies in service processes, Hu said. The FFCH will continue refining its procedures and work with insurers to build a one-stop service system that meets international standards across infrastructure, systems, and patient care, he added.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Futura Costaglione