KUCHING: KPJ Healthcare Bhd (KPJ) continues to deliver commendable performance in 2013 despite intensifying competition in the form of increasing healthcare service providers.
According to KPJ chairman Datuk Kamaruzzaman Abu Kassim and president and managing director Amiruddin Abdul Satar, the group recorded the highest ever revenue in its history last year thanks to growing contributions from its Malaysian operations and expanding overseas facilities.
“The bulk of the group’s 2013 revenue was derived from the Malaysian operations which contributed 88 per cent of total revenue,” they said in a statement to shareholders in its Annual Report 2013. “Revenue from local operations rose nine per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) to RM2.054 billion from RM1.88 billion previously on the back of higher revenue from existing hospitals and newly opened hospitals within the group.
“Meanwhile, the group’s hospitals in Indonesia continued to make good progress, turning in a 52 per cent hike in revenue to RM33.5 million from RM22.1 million previously. This increase in revenue was mainly attributable to the revenue contributed by RS Medika Permata Hijau during the financial year.”
KPJ’s aged care facility services segment recorded revenue of RM28 million in 2013, some nine per cent lower than 2012’s revenue of RM30.8 million. The decrease was attributed to the reclassication of unrealised gains in foreign exchange to other comprehensive income.
Revenue from KPJ’s ancillary services segment improved by 14 per cent to RM780 million in 2013 from RM684.7 million previously. The higher revenue was attributable to growth in activities connected to the marketing and distribution of pharmaceuticals, medical and surgical products, as well as higher demand for pathology and laboratory services.
These activities grew in tandem with the increased revenue from the group’s hospitals, they said.
Looking at medical tourism, KPJ said, revenue from this division accounted for four per cent of KPJ’s revenues.
“Given the dynamic demand from this fast growing segment, we envisage that this business will contribute some 25 per cent of KPJ’s revenues by the year 2020,” they said, adding that the group continued to tap the wealth of opportunities presented by the medical tourism market and aggressively stepping up the number of marketing and promotional activities in existing and new target markets.
Aside from activities throughout Asia, the Middle East and Australia, the group also took the opportunity to venture into the East African countries, in particular Somalia.
“Over the course of the year, KPJ actively participated in local and international exhibitions, trade expositions, road shows and health talks. All of these certainly helped reinforce Malaysia’s position as an excellent and costeffective destination for medical care as well as strengthened KPJ’s brand reputation among target audiences.”
These efforts were not in vain as it led to an 8.83 per cent increase in the number of international patients with the bulk of these coming from lndonesia as well as other countries such as Australia, New Zealand, Somalia, Libya, Singapore, India, Iran, China and the Middle East.
“This segment generated approximately RM67.1 million in revenue in 2013 and we anticipate that the number of medical tourists will increase as the Group ramps up its marketing and promotional activities which are targeted at potential patients from Indonesia, Middle East and North Africa among others.”