QC urges developers to build hotels near hospitals
The Quezon City government is enticing hoteliers and property developers to put up hotels and lodging facilities near the city’s hospital zones to cater to the needs of families of patients seeking treatment.
Mayor Herbert Bautista admitted that the city lacks accommodation facilities for non-tourist transients.
Quezon City is home to 46 government and private hospitals among which are major government hospitals, namely: Philippine Heart Center, Philippine Orthopedic Hospital, Philippines Children’s Medical Center, Lung Center of the Philippines, and National Kidney and Transplant Institute.
“We want an additional support system for the hospitals, like hotels. We want support in hospital zones. We don’t want patients and their families to go elsewhere. If someone is having a medical procedure at the Philippine Heart Center, his family should not venture outside Quezon City, to find a place to stay,” Bautista said.
Bautista also instructed the Quezon City Tourism Department to come up with a bed-and-breakfast scheme that can give livelihood opportunities to residents in areas near hospital zones.
The Quezon City government is willing to give incentives on real property taxes for those who will build hotels or bed-and-breakfast in these areas.
The mayor also emphasized the role of travel agencies in marketing Quezon City as a medical and wellness hub. It is part of his vision to make Quezon City the “Medical and Wellness Capital of Asia” by the year 2020.
“On a global scale, I’ve learned that medical tourism is one of the so-called sunrise industries. Our report from Allied Market Research forecast the world medical tourism could be 143 billion dollars by 2020. Growth is phenomenal and the Philippines is poised to benefit because of our hospitality, skilled doctors, and ready facilities,” Bautista said.
He said the city is very ripe to take the challenge of medical tourism because of the combination of the best facilities and best human resource in Quezon City.