Araw ng Dabaw Special – Davao tourism sector boasts of health, wellness services

With tourists wanting to experience health and wellness services in every place they go, Davao is just ready to serve.
Department of Tourism regional director Sonia Garcia said health and wellness spas can be found in Davao that includes dermatology, dentistry, spa and vision.
Garcia said they are putting together several groups for the Health and Wellness sector which they are working with the Department of Health (DOH) for their accreditation.
“We need to accredit the facilities to be at par with standards abroad,” she said.
A technical working group (TWG) has been formed to develop and assist the health and wellness sector for tourism.
For hospitals, Garcia said they need to meet certain standards before they get the accreditation.
Only one hospital in Davao City has been pushed for medical tourism, but right now it is still completing work for its accreditation.
She said the Davao Doctors Hospital (DDH) is undergoing rehabilitation and upgrading of its facilities, even as some of its equipments are of international standards already.
DOH assistant secretary Dr. Paulyn Jean Russell Ubial said, in medical tourism, tourists come in as patients seeking medical treatment and eventually bring with them companions as tourists.
But, she said Davao City is not only entertaining the idea of bringing in patients as tourists but also medical students from other countries.
“Right now at the Davao Medical Center (DMC), there are doctors from India and Nepal. We hope to get more students and doctors from abroad,” she said.