Medical tourism destination

Developing medical tourism is also a task assigned to the health sector by the Politburo in the draft Resolution on some breakthrough solutions to strengthen the protection, care, and improvement of people's health by 2030, with a vision to 2045.

International tourists stopping in Da Nang will have more opportunities to experience medical tourism in the future. Photo: LTK

From a policy standpoint

In March of this year, the People's Committee of Da Nang City (before the merger) issued the Plan for the Development of Medical Tourism 2025-2030, with a vision to 2050. The objectives revolve around improving the quality of medical services and standardizing them according to international practices; diversifying product packages; building an image of a safe and modern medical destination; and establishing an online support platform. Prior to that, in 2019, the Da Nang City Department of Health issued document No. 473 to hospitals in the area regarding strengthening and expanding medical services, medical services for tourism, and establishing international medical departments.

To become a "medical tourism destination" in the 2025-2030 period, Da Nang city has announced a fairly specific roadmap: by the end of 2026, at least 5 medical service packages combined with resort stays will be established; increasing to 10 packages in the second quarter of 2028 and reaching 15 packages by 2030; simultaneously connecting the medical network with 100% of tourist areas and attractions, providing foreign language and communication skills training for medical personnel, and building a multilingual digital platform for scheduling appointments, consultations, and payments.

Many international patients choose to receive treatment at medical facilities in Da Nang city. Photo: XH

This requires coordinated efforts between healthcare, tourism, and related sectors. At the Da Nang Medical Tourism Development Workshop in April 2025, Vice Chairman of the Da Nang People's Committee Tran Chi Cuong affirmed that developing medical tourism is one of the key directions in the city's high-quality service development strategy, linked to the goal of building Da Nang into a major socio-economic center of the Central and Central Highlands regions and the entire country. City leaders believe this goal is based on the city's existing advantages such as a skilled medical team, a diverse range of public and private healthcare facilities, integrated tourism infrastructure, a safe and friendly living environment, and diverse recreational and leisure resources.

Meanwhile, in 2024, the former Quang Nam province also issued a plan for implementing the project to develop traditional medicine services and products for tourists. Based on its resource advantages, many mechanisms and policies related to the development of traditional medicine services and products for tourists have been put in place. This aims to make traditional medicine a leading tourism product line. From health tourism, beauty tourism, medicinal herb tourism, discovery tourism to academic tourism, all are based on the strengths of traditional medicine.

Modern healthcare infrastructure

The collaboration between the healthcare and tourism sectors, in addition to improving service quality and modernizing medical examination and treatment processes, is also becoming a sustainable development trend for the future. Currently, healthcare facilities and hospitals in Da Nang are expanding their services to cater to foreign tourists. Many healthcare facilities have invested in purchasing medical equipment, improving service quality, and upgrading infrastructure to serve tourists.

Many international patients choose to receive treatment at medical facilities in Da Nang city. Photo: XH

In 2017, Da Nang Traditional Medicine Hospital established a "Medical Tourism" unit to provide medical examinations, treatment, and rehabilitation services for tourists and foreigners. At the Da Nang Medical Tourism Development Conference, representatives from the hospital stated that, thanks to Da Nang's attractive tourism environment, high-quality human resources, and abundant traditional medicine resources, the hospital's "Medical Tourism" unit has seen a steady increase in the number of patients seeking medical care. Patients come from various countries such as South Korea, Japan, China, the United States, the Philippines, Hungary, France, and Greece. Among them, South Korean patients account for the majority (56.9%), followed by China (11.1%), the United States (10.6%), Australia (6.7%), and the remaining 14.7%.

At Hospital 199, the unit announced the launch of a medical tourism unit to serve international visitors. In fact, the hospital has already received specialized treatment cases from foreign delegations and is promoting cooperation with international partners to standardize procedures and products.

Meanwhile, at private medical facilities, international treatment units are always a popular choice for foreign tourists. Facilities such as Family Hospital and Vinmec are reputable destinations in the Central region for international tourists, and also serve as a foundation for developing family treatment and recovery packages with longer stays, requiring post-treatment services, psychological support, nutrition, etc.

Mr. Tran Cong An, Director of Vinh Duc General Hospital (Dien Ban Dong Ward), said that in addition to meeting international standards, the hospital has connected with and reached out to foreign tourists through various channels. Vinh Duc General Hospital is also a private medical facility that proactively anticipates the trend of international tourism in the former Quang Nam province. By proactively developing examination and treatment procedures specifically for foreign visitors, the hospital also offers separate service packages with specific prices to facilitate foreign tourists and travel agencies.

Currently, many hospitals in Da Nang have set up high-quality treatment areas and areas for treatment on demand for tourists. Many hospitals have signed agreements with international health insurance companies to process health insurance payments when customers come for examination and treatment in Vietnam.

According to the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), medical tourism is one of the six main trends of future tourism, with a rapidly growing market, increasing from US$639 billion in 2017 to US$919 billion in 2022.

At the National Conference on Medical Tourism for Sustainable Development, organized by the Ministry of Health in coordination with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (August 26th), experts noted that Vietnam has a great opportunity to capitalize on this trend, but still faces many challenges.

Challenges include: a lack of a clear national medical tourism development strategy, inadequate healthcare infrastructure, limited international communication, and complicated immigration procedures that hinder tourists.

Source: https://baodanang.vn/diem-den-du-lich-y-te-3301380.html