Joint venture to build Tk 2,000cr cancer hospital
Japanese firm Ship Healthcare Holdings together with Bangladesh's Aichi Medical Group will create a 1,000-bed dedicated cancer hospital and research centre in Dhaka at a price of Tk 2,000 crore.
Aichi provides six bighas of land worth Tk 200 crore in the city's Purbachal area while the rest of the investment will come from the Osaka-based Ship Healthcare.
Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica) is also part of the project and will provide technical support to make sure world-class treatment at the hospital named the Japan Cancer Hospital and Research Institute.
"We've already got the look approval from the Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha for construction of the physical infrastructure," said Prof Md Moazzem Hossain, chairman of Aichi Medical Group.
This would be the next hospital of the jv in Bangladesh.
Ship Healthcare Holdings and Aichi Medical Group earlier setup Japan East West Medical College Hospital in Ashulia for Tk 560 crore under another jv supported by Jica.
This is Ship Healthcare's first hospital venture outside Japan. The inauguration of the 600-bed multi-speciality hospital has been pushed back by the coronavirus pandemic and it could begin full-fledged businesses in January next year.
In June, a healthcare facility opened a coronavirus unit comprising 200 beds.
The deals for the joint venture were signed in 2016.
"We could have started the construction work of the new hospital in July this year, nonetheless it got delayed as Japanese professionals went back with their country following the Covid-19 outbreak," Hossain said.
They have started to come back to Bangladesh as the situation is time for normalcy, he said.
"We now hope to get started on the construction work in January and complete the physical construction, including setting up of a lab, the effluent treatment plant for medical waste and the intensive care unit within the next thirty six months. We believe we are able to go into procedure in early 2024."
Under the joint venture, Ship Aichi Medical Services, a 30-storey hospital will be built although they have got permission for 40 floors, according to Hossain.
The hospital will create at least 2,500 jobs and can employ 200 Japanese specialised doctors, including oncologists and nurses.
"Ten per cent of the beds will be focused on the poor who'll receive treatment cost free."
The jv has requested the federal government to ease work permit for Japanese specialised doctors and nurses.
Technologies run by artificial intelligence will be introduced in a healthcare facility for diagnostic purposes. It'll put in place proton remedy for the patients, which is quite sophisticated and costly.
"The therapy, which can weed out cancer cell completely, hasn't been found in the South Asia region," Hossain said.
The hospital will ease the hassles for about 4-5 lakh patients, who go aboard yearly for cancer treatment, he said.
"You want to provide cancer treatment facilities of Japanese standards in Bangladesh."
Aichi Medical Group started its journey in 1995 and is now involved with medical, dental and nursing education along with research and development in the field.
Ship Healthcare has 300 hospitals in Japan and the group has good connections with globally renowned hospitals.
Ship Aichi Medical has signed agreements with international organisations such as for example Mahidol University in Thailand, Nagoya University in Japan, Osaka International Hospital for Cancer and CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE Japan, and Bangpakok Medical Group Bangkok to upgrade services and carry out exchange programmes.
"Japanese companies found provide quality treatment, not for conducting business, as the cancer patients in Bangladesh do not get quality treatment because of a lack of dedicated necessary cancer hospitals," said Hossain.
Every year, around 1.5 lakh persons develop cancer in Bangladesh, according to World Health Organisation.
Prof Hossain said the amount of cancer patients was increasing daily in the country.
There are 15 state-run hospitals and units that treat cancer patients in Bangladesh alongside 22 hostipal wards, in line with the Cancer Awareness Foundation Bangladesh, a non-governmental organisation.
