Fewer foreign patients, but Singapore still draws critical cases

Fewer foreign patients are flocking to Singapore than before as costs here rise and competition intensifies in the region, and there is a need for providers to pivot to offering more critical and complex care, healthcare experts said.

- Joyce Teo

For decades, foreign patients from Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Vietnam and elsewhere have been coming to Singapore for a wide range of medical care, from health screenings to scopes to surgical procedures in various specialities, including heart bypass surgery and organ transplant.

However, the competition that Singapore faces from players in the region, particularly Malaysia and Thailand, has grown significantly over the years, as healthcare providers in these neighbouring countries can carry out standard procedures for a much lower fee than what is charged here, experts said.

IHH Healthcare Singapore, the largest private healthcare provider here, said foreign patients made up about 15 per cent of its total patient base at the end of 2023, down from 20 per cent in 2019, said Mr Jeffrey Law, its chief commercial officer.

The foreign patients that it has lost are mostly those who come for health screenings and scopes, he added.

Those who are sick continue to come here for treatment, and their problems are more complex after the COVID-19 pandemic. They are thus staying longer and chalking up bigger bills as a result, he said.

Mr Law said the average length of stay of a foreign patient has gone up to four to five days, from three to four days before the pandemic.

High cost and capacity explain the drop in foreign patient numbers, said Dr Wong Seng Weng medical director of The Cancer Centre and executive director of the Singapore Medical Group (SMG).

He believes almost all private healthcare providers, on aggregate across multiple medical disciplines, would have experienced a drop and SMG is no exception.

Cost-wise, the high inflation rate in the Singapore healthcare sector might have priced its services beyond the reach of many patients in the region, he said. Furthermore, air travel costs have also gone up. "Healthcare providers in Singapore do need to moderate the increase in cost," he said.