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MED TOURISM International Forum 2022 organised by the Association of Medical Tourism and Export of Medical Services in partnership with EXPOCENTRE AO opened today within Russian Health Care Week 2022.

Leading experts from Russia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, China, Cuba, Turkiye, the United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan and other countries discussed the strategy of international medical tourism development in the current geopolitical realities.

The forum opened with a plenary session on the annual results of medical tourism projects and medical services exports.

Elena Aksenova, Director of the Research Institute of Health Care and Medical Management of the Moscow City Department of Health Care, moderated the session. In her opinion, the relevance of the topic of export of medical services and the development of medical tourism will only increase. The more and more actively the healthcare system in the Russian Federation and its regions develops, the more foreign patients start coming. Further development lies in reviewing the marketing strategy and the range of services, she said.

On behalf of EXPOCENTRE AO, First Deputy Director General Sergey Selivanov, who spoke at the meeting, welcomed the forum participants. He noted that MedTravelExpo is a leading industry project that contributes to the development of medical tourism in our country. MedTravelExpo is part of the Russian Health Care Week. A historical milestone for this exhibition is its inclusion this year in the plan of events for implementing the Decade of Science and Technology announced by the President of Russia. Russian Health Care Week and MedTravelExpo have always been distinguished by the fact that the main component is not only the exhibition showcase, but also an intensive conference programme.

Vladimir Krugly, a member of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, said: "The topic of medical services exports is very relevant, as the medical tourism market is huge, and our country has only a small share. In order to remove barriers that hinder the development of this sphere and increase the number of foreign patients, a federal project for the development of medical services exports is currently being implemented. To develop the medical tourism market and more effectively attract foreign patients, clinics have united into the Russian Association of Medical Tourism".

Oleg Ivaninsky, Member of the State Duma of the Russian Federation, spoke on behalf of the State Duma Committee on Health Protection. He spoke about the development of medical tourism in the Novosibirsk region, how it was possible to build a health policy and what unique tools were used to develop the export of medical services.

Vadim Volchenko, Minister of Resorts and Tourism of the Republic of Crimea, spoke about how one could fit into the policy of organising medical services exports, building rehabilitation routes for foreign patients from cities with a population of millions to the Crimea.

The discussion was continued by Denis Ilyin, Director of the Tourism Agency of the Ulyanovsk Region Government and Vadim Ostrovsky, Chairman of the Medical Tourism Committee of the Russian Union of Tourism Industry.

In conclusion, the speakers expressed their views on important systemic measures to be taken at the level of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation to increase the number of foreign patients coming to Russia to receive medical care.

The Forum continued with a round table of EAEU countries on medical tourism, a strategic session 'Russia - Middle East', and an integration session 'Medical Tourism of SCO Countries'.

The first day of the Forum ended with a ceremony of signing international agreements and memoranda on the development of medical tourism.

MED TOURISM International Forum 2022 will continue its work until December 8.

Press Service, EXPOCENTRE AO