Aster DM Healthcare, a leading healthcare conglomerate in the Middle East and India, plans to open three new hospitals under two different brands in the UAE besides a massive healthcare city in India.

The Dubai-based healthcare group will also launch the first phase of Aster Medcity, a major quaternary care hospital in the south Indian city of Kochi in the first quarter of the year.

A fourth hospital, under the Aster brand, is also being developed in Qatar and scheduled to launch in 2015.

The new projects in the Middle East, at an estimated investment of Dh260 million ($70.7 million), will offer advanced care through a synergy of cutting-edge medical technology and highly qualified medical professionals of multinational and multilingual background.

With the new hospitals, the bed capacity of hospitals under Aster DM Healthcare network will be increased by 5,000 over the existing 1,850 beds, said Dr Azad Moopen, the chairman and managing director of Aster DM Healthcare.

"We are extremely proud to announce the launch of our new hospital projects, aimed at providing care to people from all sections of the society. This is part of our strategy to lead the change in the healthcare sector by being the largest healthcare provider in the region and beyond," he stated.

On the UAE hospitals, Dr Moopen said the first was the 85-bed Aster Hospital to built at Mankhool, Bur Dubai. The facility is in the final phase of the preparation for commissioning in the third quarter.

The other two projects – the 75-bed Medcare Mother & Children Specialised Hospital on Sheikh Zayed Road-Dubai and a 110-bed Medcare Hospital in Sharjah – are nearing completion, and scheduled to open very soon.

These hospitals will have a combined capacity of 270 beds, ensuring better accessibility, availability and affordability of quality healthcare for more patients, he added.

On the Kochi project, Dr Moopen said: "It is a conglomeration of several super-specialty hospitals in one campus that spreads over 40 acres of land along one kilometre waterfront, aimed at integrating nature with healing."

As Kochi is well connected to the Middle East and several countries of the world, the 1,100-bed capacity medical city will be within easy reach of local and international communities, especially the people from the MEA and European Union, he explained.

The entire hospital cluster is being developed at an estimated investment of $300 million, said Dr Moopen at the press conference which was attended by Alisha Moopen, the director corporate strategies– Aster DM Healthcare, Ala Atari, the CEO of Medcare Hospital, and other senior officials.

The Aster Medcity will capitalise the potential of the Kerala as a health tourism destination, attracting patients from all around the world and promoting reverse brain drain of Indian healthcare professionals.

"Dubbed unique as a global healthcare model with high-end infrastructure, cutting-edge medical technologies and excellent knowledge partnership with healthcare innovators from different parts of the world, the iconic medical city will be a major healthcare destination in the South Asia once it’s operational," said Dr Moopen.

The group also aims to roll out another 25 Aster medical centres and 150 Aster pharmacies across the GCC by the end of 2015 to achieve its planned 300 units target by 2017.

Alisha said the new hospitals scheduled to open in the UAE will meet the growing demand for specialised care by providing holistic treatment of international quality standards to the residents, in addition to catering to the medical tourism segment in the UAE.

"The facilities we are currently setting up as part of our expansion plans are crucial for the benefit and welfare of our patients. With these new and significant additions to our network, we aim to stimulate continuous and systematic improvements in performance and outcome of patient care," she added.-TradeArabia News Service