Tk 560cr hospital nears completion
A Japanese health care service provider is fast nearing completion of erecting a Tk 560 crore hospital in Bangladesh in partnership with a local firm to provide world-class treatment.
Eighty percent of the construction work of Japan East West Medical College Hospital, a joint venture of Japanese firm SHIP Healthcare Holdings, and Bangladesh’s Aichi Medical Group, has been completed.
The joint venture company – Ship Aichi Medical Services Ltd – is expecting a soft launch of the hospital located in Ashulia next February and the grand opening in April.
“We have a long-term plan to provide high-quality services at cheaper cost. We will give priority to services instead of making big profits,” said Prof Md Moazzem Hossain, chairman of Aichi Medical Group.
The treatment cost will be one-third cheaper at the hospital compared to fees levied by high-end hospitals in Bangladesh, he said, adding that the 650-bed hospital will be a multi-specialised one equipped with Japanese technology and equipment.
Tomoo Ito, a director of the hospital, said, “We are working to set up a Bangladeshi hospital with Japanese and international standard.”
“There is a need for an international standard hospital in the country as Bangladeshi patients often go abroad for advanced treatment.”
This is SHIP Healthcare’s first hospital venture outside Japan, according to the company’s website.
In February 2016, the project was rolled out with an investment target of Tk 560 crore. Aichi Group paid Tk 114 crore and SHIP Healthcare Tk 390 crore. Japan International Cooperation Agency recently became an active partner in the project by way of investing Tk 56 crore.
The joint venture has renovated an Aichi subsidiary – East-West Medical College and Hospital – and added seven new floors on its existing building to house the new facility.
Two more buildings have been set up: an 11-storey annex building to accommodate patients and a seven-storey building for smooth operation of the hospital.
The new hospital will have 173 cabins and will dedicate 10 percent of the beds to the poor free of cost, said Hossain.
It will appoint 194 doctors, including 112 specialised ones, 376 nurses and other healthcare personnel.
It will create 1,200 jobs. The hospital will have a specialised cardiac centre, kidney centre, trauma centre, and mother and child care centre, and infertility centre.
Japanese doctors, nurses and hospital managers will work in the hospital as trainers to put in place high quality of service, Hossain said.
SHIP Aichi Medical Services Ltd has agreements with international organisations and institutions such as Mahidol University Thailand, Nagoya University Japan, Osaka International Hospital for Cancer and Heart Disease Japan, and Bangpakok Medical Group Bangkok to upgrade services and carry out exchange programmes.
The hospital is planning to introduce artificial intelligence technologies for diagnostic purposes in the near future, Ito of the new joint venture healthcare facility said.
Comments