For Amelia Reyes, vice president of the Health Tourism Association, it is key to work together from various sectors to continue promoting health tourism to the Dominican Republic.
“We have something gained and I am sure of that, we are the preferred destination in the Caribbean, we are already reaching close to seven million tourists and that is great news. To position health tourism, it is necessary, as in the first stage of conventional tourism, the participation of all sectors and actors in the value chain, which is very broad”, she said.
Reyes spoke on the health tourism panel hosted by MediTalk, together with Dr. Alejandro Cambiaso, president of the Dominican Association of Health Tourism; the vice minister of Tourism, Fausto Fernandez; Joel Santos, former president of Asonahores; and Jesus Saavedra, marketing manager of the Center for Advanced Medicine and Telemedicine (Cedimat).
Regarding health tourism, she stated that although it is true that this has gained ground, there is still much work to be done regarding the issue of reputation building.
She mentioned Costa Rica, a country that has a seal of quality that guarantees international patients a medical service and an infrastructure that complies with national and international standards.
“That is a fundamental strategy and we already have a proposal of what would be a seal of quality for the Dominican Republic.”
Reyes recalled the importance of the partnership between the public and private sectors, as well as the preparation of medical, technical, administrative and nursing personnel, the adequacy of the infrastructure, and the processes centered on the patient and under international standards.
She also spoke of the importance of the Health and Wellness Tourism Guides and announced that in October 2020 the 5th International Congress of Tourism of Health and Welfare will take place in Santo Domingo, capital of the country.
“The issue of health tourism four years ago was seen with some confusion, however, today fills the pages of newspapers, social networks and, moreover, is on the agenda of the government,” said the expert in communications and public relations .
Minister of Tourism supports the promotion
Earlier in this month and during the presentation of the Study and Diagnosis of Health and Wellness Tourism, the minister of Tourism, Francisco Javier Garcia, said that the institution has the disposition to initiate the promotion of the health tourism to the Dominican Republic.
“We are ready to establish promotion team for all the islands of the Caribbean because we understand that in these territories the majority of its inhabitants have high incomes and are small markets,” he said, adding that the success of Dominican tourism is because of the alliance between authorities and private entrepreneurs and investors.
Javier Garcia said that if the Government is willing to dedicate efforts in this niche, it is because of the progress that the health system has made at a private level in the country.
“We have all the promotion offices that are abroad, we want to put them at the service of this sector,” he emphasized.