CanCham: Cebu's natural charm needs proper promotional support

CEBU, Philippines - Despite the extensive efforts done by the health and wellness stakeholders in Cebu to promote the province’s health and wellness industry, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines (CanCham) is encouraging industry players to work harder.

Dental, cosmetics, and eye care are the most in-demand services by foreigners, especially in Canada, these should be more highlighted by the players here, said CanCham president Julian Payne.

Although the Cebu Health and Wellness Council (CHWC) already announced the formulation of standard rates among medical practitioners to attract clients from other countries, Payne said this should be complemented with aggressive promotion abroad.

The dental service for instance, is costing 10 times more in Canada, compared to the rates offered here. Besides, Cebu has its natural charm that easily captivates the foreign medical tourists, provided that proper promotion is being done, complemented with attractive packages.

While distance is also one of the concerns of medical tourists with 14-hour flight from Canada to the Philippines, attractive offers may convince the multi-million-dollar medical tourism market in the northern part of America, he said.

Getting accreditation from Canadian medical institutions can also help the players to lure medical tourists in Cebu, Payne said.

Earlier, CHWC trustee Patria Aurora Roa announced that the group has already set the standard rates for medical tourists to come to Cebu.

This is in response to the suggestions made by potential foreign clients to set up standardized rates for all services in the health and wellness packages offered through the CHWC members.

“There are different brackets that clients have to choose. We are already addressing the issue on standard rates,” Roa said.

But according to Payne, this development should be given prominent promotion effort in the industry’s target market. Canada for instance, is one of the potential markets for Cebu’s health and wellness sector.

At present, she said there are at least 10 packages available for tourists who are seeking medical and vanity services, to choose from. This already include; hotel accommodation, sightseeing tours, aside from the offering of the specified services chosen by a tourist, availing of the package.

Despite the slow movement of the industry to take off, Roa said there is a big potential that Cebu could fast track this positioning starting this year, as the CHWC organization had been working hard to promote Cebu abroad, targeting initially the Filipinos working abroad.

CHWC projected to hit 520,000 health and wellness tourists to visit Cebu in the few months of 2011. This doesn’t include those visitors that primarily come to Cebu business and incorporated their travel activities to get medical and health services here.

So far, the most common services availed by foreigners and balikbayans are dental, and vanity services, Roa said adding that the Cebu Dental Association, which is also part of the CHWC, already established its own regulated professional fees depending on the services to be availed by a patient. (FREEMAN)