Shanghai has been witnessing a surge in the international patients who travel to the city in search of more efficient and personalized medical treatments as the metropolitan moves faster to boost the openness of its healthcare services.
Shanghai has been leading China's efforts to expand the openness of the country's healthcare sector. In early 2024, the Shanghai Municipal Health Commission released a notice on promoting the internationalization of its health service sector, noting that the city should move faster to build its leading public hospitals into international medical tourism pilot institutions and standardize the city's international medical services.
According to the norms of international medical services released by the authorities in June, international services in Shanghai will feature high-standard services and techniques and target mainly the cross-border travelers seeking medical treatment.
Matthew, a British patient, was diagnosed with the carcinoma of cardia after receiving a checkup in Shanghai. He went through the phase I surgery and radiotherapy quickly. "I have never received treatment like this," said Matthew, adding that the speed of treatment provided by Shanghai's healthcare system is "second to none."
"I think the most important thing for me really is the speed of treatment and the speed of treatment and analysis of your healthcare at that point, and time is absolutely second to none. I have never received treatment like this," he said.
To better serve the personalized needs of the international patients with complex diseases, the multiple disciplinary teams (MDT) in Shanghai's top hospitals are providing medical services for their overseas customers.
The released norms of international medical services also specify the regulations on an international medical information system apart from other demands on the medical treatment spaces, drugs, medical equipment, and the medical devices. The information system should be compatible with the international medical services to be provided, with the information on appointment, consultation, examination, treatment, health management, and payment settlement being recorded, said the norms.
"We will communicate with the doctors and the hospitals of the countries where our patients come from. And the MDTs will work coordinately with each other to better support and further personalized our clinical treatments," said Chen Dan, director of the International Medical Service Department of the Zhongshan Hospital in Shanghai.
In 2023, 13 hospitals in Shanghai were given the title of Shanghai International Medical Tourism Pilot Institution of Public Hospital. Data showed that in the second quarter of this year, the outpatient clinics, the emergency clinics, and the inpatient departments of the 13 hospitals received over 160,000 visits from cross-border patients, marking a 22-percent year-over-year surge and a 15-percent month-over-month increase.
"There are at least 12 medical specialties in Shanghai now can provide the world-class clinical treatments. They are completely capable of serving the patients with premium medical services," said Luo Li, director of the Shanghai Research Center for Governance of Emerging Technologies in Medicine and Public Health.
Better international medical services will help boost Shanghai's economy, said Luo. According to an estimate of China Tourism Academy, by 2025, the country's medical tourism market will reach a scale of about 300 billion yuan (around 42 billion U.S. dollars).
"On the one hand, this stands for the quality of the services that Shanghai is capable of providing and the culture of Shanghai. On the other hand, it can help inject new capitals and vitality into Shanghai's economy," said Luo.
Shanghai serves more overseas patients amid internationalization of healthcare
The ongoing situation in the Middle East and tensions over the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping passage for oil and gas transportation, is likely to not only drive up the price of oil but also impact on a wide range of oil-derived products, a Chinese analyst has warned, adding that the current geopolitical scenario could lead to long-term changes in the global energy landscape.
The Strait of Hormuz, a narrow chokepoint between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, is the sole maritime outlet to the open ocean for the oil-producing Gulf States and has become a focal point after Iran threatened to target ships passing through in retaliation for joint U.S.-Israeli strikes.
The strait carries the bulk of crude oil exports from the likes of Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and is also a crucial artery for liquefied natural gas, not least from Qatar, one of the world's largest suppliers.
During normal times, roughly 20 million barrels of oil pass through the strait each day, about a fifth of global consumption.
Data from Lloyd's List Intelligence showed while there were 1,229 passages between March 1 and 11 last year, there were only 77 vessels transiting during the same period this year, a drop of about 90 percent year on year.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told U.S. media that the Strait of Hormuz remains open for international shipping except for vessels belonging to the United States, Israel and their allies, but many ships are avoiding the region altogether due to the high security risks amid the current crisis.
Qu Qiang, a fellow with the Belt and Road Research Center of Minzu University of China, said that the impact could have far-reaching consequences, not just for oil, but for all oil-based products.
"The Hormuz Strait is actually the most critical chokepoint of global energy and also chemistry and raw material supplies -- we're talking about 20 percent of the crude oil and gases actually being shipped through this strait and channel. But now we're looking at basically less than 10 percent of the supply has been maintained and that will very largely boost up the oil prices," he said.
"More than that, we probably have to understand the oil industry is the mother of all the modern chemistry industries, which means every day you're going to use the oil and [its] byproducts to produce fibers, medicines, chemical product and the plastics and all the things that rely on that. So if the chokepoint has been controlled and if that shipment will be curtailed, I think we're going to look at the major rise in everything [in terms of] prices," Qu continued.
To address the oil supply shortage, International Energy Agency (IEA) Executive Director Fatih Birol said on Monday that member states could release additional oil stocks as and if needed.
Last Wednesday, the 32 member countries unanimously agreed to make 400 million barrels of oil from their emergency reserves available to the market in response to disruptions caused by the Middle East conflict.
Qu welcomed the move but expressed doubt about its overall effectiveness as the ensuing uncertainty surrounding the conflict looks set to drag on.
"The supply crunch is going to be there for a very long time. The IEA, yes, has been doing a lot. Basically 400 million barrels is basically one-third of their total reserve for all the IEA members. But yes, a very good gesture, very good move, but barely helped. Because this is only four days of the global consumption and it has already been taken out of one-third of their reserves," said Qu.
Looking ahead, Qu also predicted there could a fundamental shift in the global energy landscape, noting that many nations are turning back towards traditional fossil fuels, and said he expects changes in future "petrodollar" trading practices in the long run.
"I think energy mix is going to be reformed. [The Republic of] Korea is resorting to [carbon-based fuel], it's resorting to the coal again. Japan tried to reactivate its large nuclear power, nuclear power is going to come back. Fossil fuels are going to come back and also the international oil prices are going to come back [down]. Also the whole geopolitical scenario is going to be reformed in the very long-term, like the petroleum-U.S. dollar system will also be further diversified and then [among] many new players, competition is going to pop out," he said.
Hormuz Strait tensions threaten to spike oil, byproduct prices; impact long-term energy landscape: analyst
