Regional Healthcare to account for 25% of GNP by 2020; Middle East can surpass India and China in medical product quality

Regional Healthcare to account for 25% of GNP by 2020; Middle East can surpass India and China in medical product quality
 
Medical innovation veterans, Peggy Farley and Dr Karl Groth, excel at Middle East Healthcare Expansion
 
www.ascentcompanies.com
 
Arabia has all the right ingredients to become a global healthcare provider, according to Dr Karl Groth, a director of the General Partner and co-founder of Ascent Medical Technology Funds.
 
Dr Groth, a long-time promoter of medical innovation, said that healthcare accounts for less than 10 percent of total GNP (Gross National Product) in the region and would increase to 25 percent within the next ten years.
 
Echoing his sentiments co-director, Peggy Farley, said: “Globally nearly 65 percent of all medical equipment components are outsourced at some level.
 
“There is increasing competition among medical firms in India and China, providing low cost alternatives.
 
“However Arabia has the right ingredients to rival any region in quality medical manufacturing, business practices and forward-thinking environmental strategies.”
 
She said that recent global medical manufacturing research indicates that the percentage of finished goodzs outsourced is projected to double from 14 percent to 27 percent between 2008 and 2010 [1].
 
Dr Groth further explained that the medical technology manufacturing sector requires a highly-trained and educated work force.
 
“Enhancing innovation in healthcare will create knock-on effects in jobs, increase wealth and improve the overall health of the population,” he said.
 
“The wealth of the Middle East is not solely its oil and gas; its more important wealth is the capability of its people, especially in science and technology,” Dr Groth added.
 
Dr Groth and Farley have launched two medical funds, including a region-centric channel. They are also behind the establishment of a manufacturing unit for medical supplies in Oman and a state-of-the art research unit in Jordan.
 
The Amman-based research centre is set to be the only healthcare product development hub worldwide that can provide preclinical evaluation, full-service clinical research, core lab facilities, as well as cell engineering and culturing.