The first state-of-the-art hospital in the Maldives, “Tree Top Hospital” in reclaimed suburb Hulhumale, is scheduled to open March 1.
The USD 110 million hospital boasting world-class healthcare is an initiative of some of the leading business tycoons of the country. The hospital developed by Tree Top Investments comprises Champa Hussain Afeef, Champa Mohamed Moosa, Ahmed Nazeer, Ahmed Saleem and his son Adam Saleem, Abdul Ghanee, Ibrahim Nooraddin, Dr. Ibrahim Wishan and Lars Peter, with Lars Peter as the Chairman and Ahmed Nazeer as the managing director of Tree Top Hospital.
The hospital, managed in collaboration with Australia’s Ramsey Group and Malaysia’s Sine Darby, will have a total of 210 beds with staff from 30 different countries.
At a press conference held at Tree Top Hospital to announce the opening, Adam Saleem, a shareholder of one of the largest firms in the tourism industry “Crown Company”, revealed that, at the time of opening, only In-patients or patients admitted at the hospital will be able to claim Aasandha, the universal healthcare insurance scheme of the Maldives.
“At the time of opening, only in-patients can claim Aasandha but discussions are underway so that patients having doctor consultations can also claim it. Allied (Insurance) and other insurance schemes can be claimed now. Amana Takaful insurance will also be available within a week’s time.”
Information on prices of the services available at the hospital was not revealed but will be made available by the management soon.
A special ferry operating hourly between Hulhumale and capital Male, will be available for patients seeking services of the hospital. According to Tree Top, patients from Male will first utilize the services of the hospital’s clinic based in Male’, which will house general doctors and specialist doctors, after which the patients would be referred to Tree Top Hospital in Hulhumale if necessary.
According to Saleem, an accomplished architect himself, the development of the hospital was the most challenging and difficult project of his life. The realization that a hospital cannot be developed like a resort and lack of experience in the field were the reasons why the project became so challenging, he said. The reason behind awarding the development of the hospital to Turkish group Tamarsk was that the Maldives lacked a developer with the required amount of expertise to construct such a facility, he added.
While the hospital aims to provide 70 percent of the services at the time of opening, it will reach full potential by June this year.
Speaking at the news conference, one of the directors of Tree Top Investments, Champa Hussain Afeef, stated that Tree Top Hospital had no intention of competing with other healthcare providers in the country but aspires to provide high quality healthcare to the citizens.
Afeef, one of the most successful businessmen in the Maldives, added that this initiative was aimed at providing a service rather than focusing on the business aspect of it, and that the hospital will always work in close associations with other healthcare providers to improve the services facilitated to the public.
He further said that Tree Top Hospital would collaborate with other hospitals in conducting training programs while adopting and sharing expertise to improve services in the field.
He was also hopeful that the hospital would provide a respite for patients having to travel abroad for medical treatment. The hospital boasts 80 rooms for patients from other areas of the country to reside in and avails a more affordable quality service without having to travel abroad.
According to Afeef, the ultimate dream would be to have a hospital fully staffed with Maldivians, and he hoped that it would be achieved in the next 10 to 15 years. Even though the investment is led by prominent businessmen of the tourism sector, introducing medical tourism was not of importance but the focus was more on providing the nation with quality healthcare, he said.
Sign In