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SINGAPORE : Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan has said construction plans for the new Jurong General Hospital have been brought forward to take advantage of softening construction costs.
In July, the government said it was deferring another S$1.7 billion of public sector construction projects to ease pressure on the then red-hot construction sector.
The Health Minister said Tuesday "I have held back the construction of, the planning of Jurong Hospital until the construction sector pricing is more sober, and I think it is soberizing."
He said that Jurong General Hospital which was originally slated for completion in 2015, is likely to be earlier now.
Minister Khaw added that another key reason is that hospitals are operating near capacity.
"We have been enjoying a very steady growth - almost 20 per cent per annum compound rate of foreign patients. But last year, compared to 2006, it was quite flat" he said.
"I don't think it is because demand has shrunk or we are losing competitiveness, but capacity is constrained. When I visit friends who go to private hospitals, I look at the ward chock-a-block, just like public hospitals."
To address the shortage of hospital beds, Singapore HealthPartners - a partnership formed by local doctors - is also building a "mediplex", which consists of a hospital, hotel and specialist medical centre, in Little India.
But it is not just a shortage of beds, there is also a shortage of doctors.
Over 600 doctors graduated in Singapore in the last three years, while over 1,000 foreign medical graduates were recruited over the same time.
And there is still a need of more doctors to service new citizens and foreign patients. Recruitment is not expected to slow down with the recession, and no pay cuts are expected for public sector nurses and doctors.
Mr Khaw said it is important to pay them the market rate, otherwise the industry may lose 300 specialists by the time the new hospital opens.
Right now however, with a slowing economy, there is the possibility of cheaper drugs for patients, as the steep increase in drug prices in the last two years were partly due to high oil prices.
On the flip side, there has been a drop in medical tourism in Singapore.
Despite the drop healthcare operators are taking advantage of the down time to expand services.
Private healthcare operator ParkwayHealth is building a 350-room hospital which will be ready by 2011. The hospital will specialise in four main clinical areas - musculoskeletal, heart and vascular, oncology and general surgery.
ParkwayHealth has seen a 5 to 7 per cent drop in medical tourists in recent months due to the financial crisis. It expects the fall to taper off at 10 per cent.
But it is confident that in the long run, patients from the Middle East, Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and the Asian region will continue to seek treatment in Singapore.
The national aim is to treat one million foreign patients a year by 2012.
ParkwayHealth said the drop in medical tourists from Indonesia in recent months has been most pronounced. But more patients are coming from Vietnam and Bangladesh.
"This is about the best time to build a hospital whereby we have more time, and our hands are not so tied with operational problems, so we can pay more attention to the construction," said Dr Lim Cheok Peng, managing director of Parkway Holdings Ltd.
Construction costs in Singapore have been falling due to a slowing economy, and this is good news for ParkwayHealth's new hospital at Novena which is estimated to cost between S$300 million and S$500 million.
- CNA /ls/sf
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