Cluster of Innovations is the Key to Expansion

In the past three years, Gleneagles Hospital Hong Kong has received recognition as a private healthcare leader with a number of firsts in innovative procedures and facilities.

Gleneagles Hospital Hong Kong (Gleneagles) celebrated its third birthday in March 2020. Since it opened, the hospital has progressed from being a new brand to one with a loyal following of return patients. A joint venture between one of Asia’s key integrated private healthcare groups Parkway Pantai and Hong Kong-listed NWS Holdings, Gleneagles’ exclusive clinical partner is The University of Hong Kong (HKU). Today, the hospital provides a wide spectrum of medical services and innovative procedures, some of which are unique in Hong Kong. 

Your peace of mind

From its outset, Gleneagles offered a transparent fee structure, with a current list of over 250 all-inclusive fixed price packages for patients seeking treatment in the 500-bed hospital. The hospital is a pioneer in introducing fixed price packages, offering price transparency to Hong Kong’s public. The package fee covers all costs related to the surgery or procedure, even in the situation if re-operation, intensive care, etc. is required due to complications related to the patient’s condition. It was accredited by The Australian Council on Healthcare Standards in November 2019 – after a mere 33 months in operation. Earlier this year, it began implementing virtual consultation service, to address the needs of patients who may be particularly concerned about attending medical consultations during the pandemic. In March 2019, it opened a satellite medical clinic in Central, and plans to move to a more spacious location in the same district in September this year. Today, Gleneagles employs some 1,200 staff members. 

“There is room for innovation in Hong Kong’s private healthcare sector,” Dirk Schraven, Chief Executive Officer, stated. “We want to be a leader in innovation.” He cites a number of firsts in private hospitals in Hong Kong including launching inpatient Behavioural Health service, performing hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy – a therapy in which heated chemotherapy solution is delivered into patient’s abdominal cavity after surgery – for ovarian cancer patients, participating in the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative, and more recently, opening the new Paediatric Intensive Care Unit to cater for babies and children with severe conditions., Meanwhile, the hospital is developing a patient app which will allow patients to access their medical records, make appointments, conduct wayfinding, etc easily and quickly.

Strength in numbers

“It has always been our vision to develop a system of healthcare centres – we never open a single hospital in a location,” Schraven explained. “There are many benefits to a cluster of medical centres, including shared services and overhead. We intend to open more facilities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, such as a medical centre with imaging capabilities in Zhuhai while Hong Kong will be the base. Eventually, we also intend to link up with Gleneagles hospitals in Chengdu and Shanghai as to build a network.” 

In the past three years that Schraven has been living and working in Hong Kong, he has worked closely with the city’s medical professionals. “Hong Kong has high clinical standards. Working with HKU has been a big benefit. The city’s pool of support professionals is also excellent,” he concluded.