04 MEDICAL TECHNOLOGY
Medical devices for neurosurgery
Pandemic changes the demand for medical products Thomas Hundt A LARGE MARKET WITH SOLID PROSPECTS The Thai market for medical technology is considered the largest in Southeast Asia. The market researchers at Fitch Solutions last estimate of sales was around US$1.7 billion in 2019. They predict that it would grow by 5 per cent annually in the medium term. Demand will shift to higher-quality technology and more digital applications. These trends are now gaining momentum due to Covid-19.
HEALTH-CARE SERVICE HAS COVID-19 UNDER CONTROL The Covid pandemic is the dominant topic. Public health authorities and health-care services have made strenuous efforts to contain the corona waves and provide sufficient care for Covid patients. The World Health Organization (WHO) describes the public health system as strong to fight a pandemic. One million voluntary health workers who are also epidemiological qualified support the fight against the pandemic. Health services have tackled even the contagious delta variant successfully that had spread in the country from mid- to late-2021. The health system quickly adapted to the emergency situation. Necessary devices and protective equipment were purchased worldwide. From January to October 2021, imports of medical technology rose by 17 per cent compared to the same period in 2020. Imports of respirators and defibrillators even increased threefold during this period in
UPDATE 1/2022
2021. But imports of electromedicine and ophthalmological equipment, of which Germany supplied 11 per cent and 35 per cent of the devices, recorded only slight increases. The vaccination campaign and booster vaccinations should ease the situation in 2022. However, due to the on-going control and precautionary measures, demand for medical protective equipment, thermometers and scanners as well as for equipment for cleaning and disinfection will remain high.
HEALTH-CARE SYSTEM PREPARES FOR LONG TERM CHALLENGES According to the latest calculations, Thailand spent about US$ 21 billion on health care in 2019. Expenditure on health care is growing even faster than gross domestic product (GDP). The share of GDP rose from 3.1 per cent to 3.9 per cent from 2005 to 2019, but it is still far below the ratio in Western countries.
