Thomson Medical Center, an old woman in obstetrics and gynecology (O & G) services in Singapore, may soon be making a face-lift.
The company has 37 years of construction on Thomson Road and is seeking to increase its capacity. “The hospital is now fully operational,” said Roy Quek, chairman of Thomson Medical. The average bed occupancy in the 190-bed hospital is about 80%.
But before the hospital can be rebuilt, it must find an alternative site. “If we can develop additional capacity beyond the existing hospitals, we will be able to re-develop our existing hospitals to better serve our customers,” he said.
Whatever the additional space will take the form of a brand-new building or build on the existing healthcare space remains to be seen, although Mr. Quek said Thomson has been in discussions with the authorities. The Ministry of Health refused to respond to questions in this regard.
Mr. Quek’s goal is to provide Thomson with a full range of medical services – similar to the services provided by general hospitals, not just O & G services. This will allow Thomson to remain at the same level as other private medical groups that already have similar general hospital facilities, such as Raffles Medical or Parkway.
Freelance designer Kimberly Ang, 24, who gave birth to her first child in Thomson last month, feels the hospital is upgrading. “The parking lot is a bit of a hassle because the parking spaces are so limited,” she said, adding that the hospital’s interior was “quite disappointed”.
“It’s very small, the channel is very entangled, so it’s hard to get your way,” she added.
Thomson will also carry out preventive medical services at a new company, Thomson Wellth, which will begin operating in the first quarter of next year.
They include the provision of services such as health checks. “We need additional capacity to expand our expertise and strengthen our operations because we have about 30 clinics outside the hospital,” he said. “These include the women’s and children’s clinics in the center, such as in Jurong, Binnie and Shengkang.
Thomson already operates a private hospital in Kuala Lumpur and will open a private hospital in Johor Bahru in 2020. Ideally, Mr. Quek’s Singapore business will be the company’s flagship: “Singapore will be the basis for ideas, standards and innovation to flow to other centers.”
This article was first published on Dec 27, 2016.
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