July-August . 2024 | The HEALTH

Hong Leong Investment Bank Bhd ( HLIB Research ) stated that the fortification of established hospital assets and ongoing growth in medical tourism across most continents would boost the local healthcare sector .

The research firm maintained an ‘ overweight ’ rating on the sector for 2024 , with IHH Healthcare as the top pick with a target price of RM7.67 a share . The firm believes that the company ’ s share price will experience a structural uptrend in the coming years .

According to HLIB , two sizable incoming hospital initial public offerings ( IPOs ) in 2026 and 2027 are expected to be valued at least 20 times the enterprise value to earnings before interest , taxes , depreciation , and amortisation ratio ( EV / EBITDA ).

The firm said this could prompt investors to scrutinise the valuation divergence versus IHH and KPJ in 2026 onwards , with rerating potential for both IHH and KPJ , with IHH as the primary beneficiary .

“ Among the two , IHH has the potential to distinguish itself due to its geographical diversification across nations in Singapore , Malaysia , Turkiye , Europe , and India , enabling the group to capitalise on growth in a variety of countries .

“ IHH has reputable global brand names such as Mont Elizabeth , Gleneagles , Pantai , Acibadem , and Fortis , as well as its higher five-year and three-year historical EV / EBITDA averages of 17 times and 15 times respectively , compared to KPJ ’ s 12 times and 13 times ,” the firm stated in a research note .

HLIB mentioned that KPJ Healthcare Bhd and IHH Healthcare were shifting their focus to fortify their established hospital networks through brownfield expansions and the establishment of various specialisation centres .

It stated that combining these two strategies could deliver more stable profit and return ratios . Under a bullish scenario , this could lead to a secular uptrend in the financial year 2024 ( FY24 ) and beyond . Both IHH Healthcare and KPJ Healthcare planned to increase bed capacities from 12,246 and 3,520 , respectively , to 16,250 ( 33 per cent ) and 5,000 ( 42 per cent ) by 2028 .

On medical tourism in Malaysia , HLIB said the Malaysia Healthcare Travel Council ( MHTC ) forecasted revenue to grow another 15 per cent in 2024 to RM2.4 billion , consistent with the pre-pandemic compound annual growth rate ( CAGR ) of 15 per cent from 2011 to 2019 .

SK PUTRAJAYA Presint 11 ( 1 ) proudly won US $ 100,000 ( approximately RM470,000 ) at the AIA Healthiest Schools ( AHS ) Regional Awards ceremony held on Thursday , July 4 , in Indonesia .

The primary school won the grand prize , surpassing winning schools from five other AIA markets — Indonesia , Thailand , Hong Kong , Australia , and Vietnam .

Earlier , on June 19 , SK Putrajaya Presint 11 ( 1 ) and SMK Convent Butterworth received USD13,000 ( RM60,600 ) each for winning their respective categories at the AHS national-level competition .

Both schools then represented Malaysia and competed regionally against the five other participating countries across Asia-Pacific .

SK Putrajaya Presint 11 ( 1 ) emerged as the winner for its innovative HELPIE health mobile application , which is designed to improve students ’ mental wellbeing by offering tools for stress identification and management , fun games , and health campaigns .

The project yielded impressive results , with over 500 students experiencing a drop in stress levels from 34 per cent to 18 per cent and 92 per cent of the students reporting better emotional understanding .

Teacher and HELPIE Project Lead Mohd Saharudin Setapa said the award recognised the hard work of his students and himself .

“ We will try to sustain this project using the prize money and hopefully expand it to other countries to encourage better mental health and well-being in students everywhere . I want to thank the principals , parents , and students for all their contributions and support to this project ,” he said .

Meanwhile , SMK Convent

SK Putrajaya ( from left ) AIA Malaysia Corporate Communications Manager Tunku Faradiana Tunku Zainal Abidin , Suzana , Saharudin , SK Putrajaya Presint 11 ( 1 ) Headmistress Norzah Mohd Kassim , AIA Malaysia Brand and Communications Director Asha Nair , and SMK Convent Butterworth Principal Lim Lean Yolk , posing for a photo with the Malaysian flag after the awards ceremony .

Butterworth Senior Assistant of Student Affairs Suzana Khamis showcased their Eco-Jump Rope and Dumbbell and said they were proud of their project and happy to have competed regionally . The project promoted fitness and sustainability , fostering creativity , teamwork , and a greener lifestyle among students .

Endorsed by the Education Ministry , the AIA Healthiest Schools programme was designed to encourage healthy living habits among students aged five to 16 by promoting healthy eating , active lifestyles , mental well-being , and sustainability in schools .

The programme also provided free downloadable resources to equip teachers to introduce health and well-being concepts into their classrooms effectively .

IN AN effort to enhance transparency and ensure fair competition , the Ministry of Health Malaysia ( MoH ) has reinforced its stance against price fixing and the use of middlemen in the procurement of pharmaceutical products .

This was emphasised during a recent engagement session held with producers , manufacturers , and registration holders of pharmaceutical products .

The meeting , which took place on July 5 , 2024 , aligns with the MADANI Government ’ s commitment to a transparent and efficient administrative governance system .

It sought to address the implementation of drug procurement policies within the MoH while soliciting feedback from the pharmaceutical industry .

“ The Ministry is firm and will not tolerate elements of price collusion , anti-competition , or any practices , including the appointment of agents or middlemen , that could compromise the management of drug procurement ,” the Ministry stated .

They noted that such practices can prevent the government from securing the best value for money and contribute to the increased cost of drug procurement .

MoH also highlighted its concern over some companies charging the government higher prices for medicines compared to the private sector . This issue extends to sole product registration holders with the National Pharmaceutical Regulatory Division ( NPRA ).

In response to these challenges , the Ministry is conducting a study on the effectiveness of its current drug procurement system .

Stakeholders are encouraged to submit suggestions for improvements that could foster more open competition and support the growth of the local pharmaceutical industry .

This engagement underscores the Ministry ’ s commitment to ensuring the government ’ s drug procurement process remains transparent , competitive , and efficient , ultimately benefiting both the public sector and the local pharmaceutical industry .