中臺灣發展觀光醫療的前景與機會

The Prospects and Opp ortunities of Medical Tourism in Central Taiwan

台灣觀光醫療與鄰近各國比較起來發展較晚，除吸取國際醫療成功發展的國家經驗外，應針對目前台灣在國際知名度還是不高、在國際醫療產業領域為亞洲四小龍之尾等這些缺點進行改善，並發展台灣醫院品牌，將台灣觀光醫療推上國際。由於台灣初期將發展重心放在北部與南部，在北部與南部都建有國際機場以利外國遊客來台就地觀光旅遊，目前政府開始重視中部並開始發展中部，中台灣在2008 年開始有了清泉崗機場為中台灣發展觀光醫療的利基，但由於台北與高雄發展較早，而形成現在中台灣發展較北部與南部慢的情況。中台灣擁有許多具台灣文化與獨具特色的觀光景點，在台中國際機場啟用後中台灣在觀光醫療的發展上更是潛力無窮，藉由醫院鄰近南投觀光景點優勢與改善交通狀況將旅遊景點大大的往北部與南部延伸，期望中台灣能成為觀光醫療的重點地區。

Medical tourism in Taiwan has developed late compared to other places in Asia. The medical industry in Taiwan is not well-known throughout the world. Moreover, compared with Hong Kong, South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan is at the bottom of the list. Our goal is to promote medical tourism to the world. Therefore, not only should Taiwan learn from the experiences of countries, which have fully developed international medical tourism industries, but also improve its weaknesses and develop a unique brand in Taiwan. The initial development in Taiwan was concentrated in north and south Taiwan. Both of these areas have international airports which allow the tourists to visit conveniently. In recent years, the Taiwan government has turned their attention to central Taiwan. In 2008, the Taichung Ching Chuan Kang Airport opened up to international flights, allowing Taichung a establish niche in medical tourism development in central Taiwan. Because the development in Taipei and Kaohsiung began earlier, medical tourism in central Taiwan has developed slowly. However, central Taiwan offers rich Taiwanese culture and exclusive local landscapes. Owing to the advantage of scenery in Nantou and the improvement in transportation, the Nantou area has also begun offering tours from north and south Taiwan. With the opening of the international airport in Taichung, the potential for medical tourism in central Taiwan is unlimited. We expect that central Taiwan will become an important area for medical tourism in the future.