Min-Sheng General hospital was one of four Taiwanese hospitals that recently attended a health fair in Beijing, where they promoted their core specialties and other services of interest to the Chinese public. The initiative was supported by TAITRA, the government body in charge of developing external trade, with the aim to attract more Chinese patients to Taiwan's top hospitals. The quality of care of Taiwanese hospitals is well known in China and the prices charged here are also very competitive. Moreover, since language and culture are quite similar, Taiwan makes for a more convenient alternative to other countries in the region.
Many Chinese tour operators already include some kind of medical activity - usually a health screening or a light cosmetic procedure - in their packages in order to qualify for a medical tourism visa, however, since independent Chinese travelers are now also allowed to travel to Taiwan, some are looking for other procedures. Min-Sheng General Hospital has this year welcomed several patients from the Chinese mainland who traveled to Taiwan to undergo weight loss and metabolic surgery.
Min-Sheng General
Hospital has launched a new English website (www.missioncare.com.tw) aimed at
providing foreign expats in Taiwan and medical tourists the tools and
information they need to facilitate their access to health care in Taiwan.
Building on years of
experience dealing with foreign patients, Min-Sheng General Hospital’s
International Healthcare Center has designed a new English website that wishes
to be informative and practical for local foreign patients visiting the
hospital, as well as a marketing tool to promote Mi-Sheng’s specialties to
overseas patients. Local English speaking patients will find all the practical
information they need regarding the hospital and the services it offers, and
the on-line registration procedure to make a doctor appointment has been
simplified.
Since the majority of
patients traveling to Min-Sheng General Hospital from abroad do so either for
weight loss, orthopedic, or cosmetic surgery, or for a health screening, the
website has been constructed to reflect this trend. Each of these specialties
has its dedicated “mini-site” that introduces the services proposed as well as
their delivery process. The mini site covering weight loss and metabolic
surgery actually contains such a wealth of information that it could be spun
off as a standalone website. The new English website also incorporates social
media; there are links to the Min-Sheng International blog, to a brand new
facebook page, and patients’ testimonials videos have been uploaded on YouTube.
Min-Sheng General
Hospital has long been at the forefront of international healthcare in Taiwan,
and the new website reiterates the hospital’s commitment to providing outstanding
service to foreign patients.
Min-Sheng General Hospital recently signed an agreement with ZION Health Control and Youth Rejuvenation Center (Zion), a Guanhzhou based company specializing in cosmetic and anti-aging treatments in upscale facilities in China. The company offers a membership program and targets affluent customers in China’s main urban centers.
As part of the agreement, ZION will send its members to Taiwan for yearly check-ups and tests that cannot be performed locally. The first groups of patients sent by ZION have already been services at the VIP Health Screening Center located on the 21st floor of Min-Sheng General Hospital.
Min-Sheng General Hospital has been granted permission by the Taiwan Department of Health to receive patients from the Chinese mainland for treatment, and to support their application for a medical visa. Although the scheme is theoretically designed for Chinese tourists travelling in groups and those travelling individually, it is likely that most will do so as part of a package tour. In such case, the medical component of the package will only be an add-on, and not the main purpose of the trip to Taiwan.
Personalized service, cutting edge technology, and competitive pricing are a draw for Chinese medical tourists, who will at first mostly seekhealth screenings, light cosmetic surgery, and anti-aging treatments. However, Min-Sheng hopes to build on its reputation, and experience treating international patients from Europe and North America to attract Chinese patients looking for spine surgery and bariatric surgery.
Min-Sheng General hospital has entered a cooperation agreement with the Hair Transplantation Center of Kyungpook National University Hospital in Korea, to work on developing new cosmetic techniques to address baldness. A team of platic surgeons from Min-Sheng Hospital, lead by the director of the International Healthcare Department Dr. Chen Shing-Han, traveled to Daegu in Korea where they met with Dr. Kim Moonkyu the head of the Hair transplantation Center who has developed new tools to transplant hair follicles.
Plastic surgeons at Min-Sheng have been trained to use these tools and are proficient in the latest hair transplantation techniques. Cosmetic surgery is gaining acceptance among men in far eastern countries, and male patients are increasingly turning to surgical hair implantation to reverse baldness. These procedures normally involve taking a strip of scalp at the base of the hair line, separate the follicles, and implant them in the chosen areas. The whole process is routinely completed in a few hours, and performed under local anesthesia.
Men and women seeking to eliminate some of the facial “wear and tear” brought by years, but who don’t want to undergo a face lift or facial plastic surgery, are increasingly opting for facial fat injections. This method of “facial fat sculpting” can restore attractive contours to the chin, cheeks, and under-eye area, as well as add volume to lips. Microlipoinjection , also called Autologous Fat Transfer, is a procedure in which a patient's own body fat is used to plump up sunken or emaciated areas of the face or to add volume where desired. It is called "autologous" because it refers to the use of one's own tissues or fat. Likewise, Autologous Fat Transfer is a popular option for breast augmentation as an alternative to traditional breast implants.
Since the patient's own fat is used, Autologous Fat Transfer is performed in three steps. The first step involves the gentle liposuction of some excess fat in the abdomen, thighs, or buttocks. Fats cells are then isolated, cleansed and purified before being injected in the targeted facial areas. The whole process which takes less than two hours is performed under local anesthesia; some patients choose to have more excess fat removed and combine the procedure with a liposuction. A significant benefit of using the patient’s own fat is that the results generally last much longer than the results of other dermal fillers. And there is no allergic reaction to worry about. Individual fat transfer results can vary, but with a properly performed procedure, the results may last for years.
Min-Sheng General Hospital’s highly skilled plastic surgeons have successfully performed numerous Autologous Fat Transfers. This quick and safe technique offers tangible results and is less expensive than other types of surgical facial rejuvenation options, making it an ideal procedure for foreigners visiting Taiwan for business or leisure.
Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) is the medical use of oxygen at a level higher than at atmospheric pressure. It was initially developed to treat divers suffering from decompression sickness or gas embolism. Many other applications have since been found for this painless procedure in which a person is exposed to increased pressure, thus allowing greater absorption of oxygen throughout the body tissues. This increased pressure allows more oxygen to reach the cells within the body therefore contributing to many healing and therapeutic benefits. In other words, when utilizing HBOT, oxygen is gently forced into the tissues, organs, brain and fluids throughout the body thanks to the pressurization of the hyperbaric chamber.
This oxygen influx stimulates cell growth and regeneration, displaces toxins and other impurities to assist in the detoxification of the body, and since bacteria and viruses typically cannot tolerate oxygen it also reinforces the immune system. These are some of the properties that explain why Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy is currently used to treat a variety of ailments like carbon monoxide poisoning, crush/trauma injuries, diabetic foot ulcers, problem wounds, or severe anemia. In America, physicians refer patients to hospitals with hyperbaric chambers for treatment if they suffer from one, or more, of the thirteen conditions which are approved by the FDA. In Taiwan the use of HBOT for treatment of these conditions is covered by the National Health Insurance. Research suggests that the benefits of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy can also be used in the treatment of many other “off-label” (non-FDA approved) conditions ranging from migraine to multiple sclerosis, and to improve the body’s general well being or speed up its recovery time after exercising.
The HyperbaricOxygenTherapyCenter at Min-ShengGeneralHospital was established eightyearsago by Dr. Chen Shing-Han, and treats several hundred patients every month. In recent years an increasing number of these patients were referred to the center by dental and cosmetic clinics to help alleviate the pain and speed up the recovery associated with some of their procedures. Min-Sheng’s HyperbaricCenter is equipped with two multiplacechambers;the smaller chamber is located in a dedicated spa environment and can be converted into a monoplace chamber for those who wish for the comfort and privacy that such chambers afford. All HBOT sessions are conducted under medical supervision, and patients (referred or not) will see a physician specializing in hyperbaric medicine before starting any treatment. The Center is open from Monday to Friday and is located on the second floor of the hospital.
