Vachira Phuket Hospital, a state-run hospital in Phuket, is expanding its role in the medical tourism sector. The hospital aims to attract more international patients seeking weight-loss surgery, capitalising on growing demand for this popular procedure.
Dr Thakoon Poonthananiwatkul, a senior surgeon at Vachira Phuket, said the hospital has over a decade of experience in performing bariatric surgery on the stomach and intestines, treating more than 3,400 patients.
Additionally, its weight-loss surgery practices have received accreditation from the Surgical Review Corporation (SRC), a nonprofit organisation in the United States that promotes patient safety and sets high standards for medical professionals.
Bariatric surgery is an ideal option for weight loss and is normally done when diet and exercise have failed or when overweight or obese patients also have serious health problems because of their weight, said the surgeon.
After the procedure is completed, these patients have on average lost between 25% and 40% of their body weight.
Whether that weight loss will be sustainable usually depends on the patient's dietary and exercise habits, Dr Thakoon said.
Having started this surgery in 2015, "Vachira Phuket Hospital has an excellence centre for bariatric surgery, which is now accredited by the US SRC", he said.
The accreditation is a huge benefit for Phuket's promotion of medical and health tourism as it will help attract more Thai nationals and foreigners to the island for this weight-loss surgery, boosting the local economy, Dr Thakoon said.
Over the past three years, Vachira Phuket Hospital has performed bariatric surgery on 500 to 700 cases a year, or 40 to 50 people a month, he said, adding the hospital's experienced team conducts such surgery on a daily basis all year round.
And now as part of the hospital's plan to become a medical tourism centre of Phuket, foreign customers who are interested in undergoing bariatric surgery are treated as a new target group, he said.
The hospital will start with expats already living on the resort island before moving on to other groups, he said.
Dr Veerasak Lorthongkham, director of the hospital, said these improvements reflect the hospital's commitment to providing exceptional care and fostering Phuket's growth as a prime destination for medical tourism.
