20-Jan-17 Private jet company L’Voyage is seeing growing interest in overseas medical and wellness trips from China. The ultra-rich prefer to fly by private jet and are increasingly choosing Europe and the US for treatments, drugs and technologies not available in China. Global Growth Markets estimates that 4,300 ultra-rich Chinese sought treatments overseas in 2015. [image: International Medical Travel Journal]

19-Jan-17 Researchers at Osaka University are aiming to take the institution's regenerative medicine and medical equipment to the world. The university's Global Center for Medical Engineering and Informatics is teaming up with Asian countries where there is insufficient equipment. The center has produced a prototype of a small laparoscopy system that can be operated with one hand. [image: Osaka University]

 Insights

30-Dec-16 According to China’s leading online travel marketplace, Ctrip, Chinese medical tourism grew to reach 500,000 outbound trips in 2016, and Ctrip's medical tourism business grew by 500%, having been launched in Sep 2015. Health checks made up over 50% of Chinese medical tourism trips in 2016. Among Ctrip’s customers, Japan was the most popular destination followed by Korea. [image: Shutterstock / Jing Daily]

15-Dec-16 A number of changes that are afoot in Japan as the country seeks to enhance its medical tourism footprint by helping patients further afield. The government announced a push towards medical commercialisation in 2010, and this prompted Japanese companies and hospitals to open 19 medical services in 13 countries since then. [image: Aizawa Healthcare International Ltd]