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Ailyn Agonia
Doha
Locations for establishing the first Filipino hospital in Qatar have been identified. Scheduled to be launched in 2018, the venture will include a 750 square metre polyclinic facility.
The ambitious initiative has evoked keen interest among investors from the Filipino community after the decision was made public in July.
On Friday, a five-man delegation from Manila headed by Dr Jose Tiongco, Chairman of Medical Mission Group Hospital and Health Services Cooperative (MMG), visited the Philippine Embassy Doha.
They were also accompanied by members of the Philippine Business Council-Qatar (PBC).
PBC Chairman Greg Loayon said they are in the process of acquiring the necessary documents, including registering the company with Qatar Financial Centre, to proceed with the first Filipino hospital outside of the Philippines.
He said the information sessions being conducted over the last three months have so far enlisted 750 to 800 Filipinos who have evinced interest in investing in the hospital.
The team has targeted about 10 percent of the total population of Filipinos in Qatar, or about 25,000 Filipino investors.
"For the last three months, I have been running information session every Saturdays as we want them to make informed decisions. We are not extending an invitation to invest but an invitation to look at opportunities for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in the country. We want them to decide how (the cooperative hospital) will benefit them and their families. The next few months will be busy days for us in terms of information campaigns working on legal documentation," Loayon said.
The initiative aims to extend the unique healthcare model of MMG, which is a network of 19 hospitals in the Philippines, to Qatar.
Robert Lepon, a member of the team based in Doha, said the initiative will initially set up in Qatar but plans are already in place to expand the concept to other parts of the region such as the UAE (Dubai and Abu Dhabi) and Saudi Arabia.
"Filipinos have a competitive edge over nationals of other countries when it comes to offering healthcare services. We have to capitalise on that which we have not done offshore. This is the first step," said Robert, adding that there are more than 200,000 Filipinos in Qatar which is a good size to start with for a Filipino hospital.
"If you look at statistics, about 80 percent of the nurses in Qatar are Filipinos. But we don't have our own hospital. The benefits of this initiative to Filipinos include receiving hospital service from healthcare professionals who speak their language and who can provide a quality service. It also provides an opportunity to invest. MMG hospital network comprises 19 hospitals. Your investment stays in the Philippines. Even if you get to be sent home you can keep your investment in Filipino hospitals in the Philippines and still generate income. It is not tied up to your residency in Qatar. Your relatives can also benefit from MMG hospitals back home."
Lyndon Magsino, a former community leader in Doha who now stays in Dubai, said the project provides a paradigm shift among OFWs wherein they are given the opportunity not just to be workers but to be investors.
"This pioneering concept has never been done before in the hospital setting. It is a cooperative business model incorporating hotel international chain set-up and structure catering to OFWs. We are setting it up in Qatar but the concept will spread within the GCC and to other countries like the US and Canada. The people behind this initiative are known in the Filipino community and we are supported by the embassy. This is a purely legitimate venture," Magsino said.
