Recent developments have led to the increasing pressure for healthcare institutions to continuously upgrade clinical capabilities and concurrently provide added-service offerings to attain strong competitive advantages. In addition to the uncertainties of the global business environment, healthcare providers must adapt to the changing needs and demands of consumers. Demands for health services are no longer confined to clinical care and have extended to include overall wellness, including both physical and mental health. This study provides an exploration of health tourism as part of the health industry constellation undergoing transformations as a consequence to adaptation. Based on a systematic desktop research, a descriptive analysis was employed to map the health tourism profile of three countries, namely, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. A compiled information on selected health institutions were then used to evaluate the degree of which Patient Experience (PX) principles were adjusted in offering health tourism destinations. Results indicate that although health tourism encompass a broad range of experiences, high quality medical-based services allow for enhancing existing capabilities to serve as favorite destinations. Adapting PX to encapsulate hospitality in health care offers clear guidelines to ensure optimum quality of services and successful adaptation. Ultimately, this study is the starting point necessary to overcome uncertainties and shed light on the alternative paths for sustainability of health tourism.

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