Bumrungrad Health Network (BHN), a business unit of Bumrungrad International Hospital, is joining hands with Be Well Medical Center, a Hua Hin-based family medical clinic, to significantly expand its health care to cover expats as part of a plan to cope with a drop in patient numbers during the pandemic.
The decrease, notably in foreign patients, caused the hospital to adjust its business.
"We call our new business a 'family doctor centre', which aims to provide international standard medical services to patients in communities," said BHN chief executive Somsak Vivattanasinchai.
BHN is seeking opportunities to expand its medical services to new target groups. There are 2.45 million expats in Thailand, said Mr Somsak, citing 2020 statistics compiled by the Labour Ministry.
Be Well Medical Center, which provides primary care for patients, is located at Banyan Resort Hua Hin.
Haiko Emanuel, founder of the centre, said more than 80% of its customers are expats who are accustomed to visiting their family doctors in their home countries of the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland and Austria.
Thais increasingly realise the benefits of primary care and their numbers are growing at the centre, he said.
The clinic's target is 10,000-15,000 retirees as well as permanent and long-term foreign residents in Hua Hin. The centre welcomes all age groups, but the majority of its patients are aged 60 to 101. This age group has a high risk of developing heart disease, said Mr Emanuel.
"Be Well Medical Center plans to expand its clinic to Chiang Mai, Phuket and Pattaya because they are high-quality destinations with a large number of expats and tourists," he said.