Seven Corners Attends Philippines Medical Tourism Conference

DoT Unites Health and Wellness Tourism Sector
The Manila Bulletin

RP Unveils Branding as 'Heart of Asia'
The Philippine Star

Tourism Undersecretary for Health and Wellness Cynthia Carrion(l) and Health Seec. Francisco Duque(r) address the delegates at the Conference Banquet (The Philiippine Star)

Going by the feedback from international delegates and speakers at the recent Department of Tourism- sponsored Philippine Health and Wellness Tourism Summit 2008 dubbed "Embracing Health and Wellness Tourism in the Heart of Asia," the Philippines is closer than ever to its dream of becoming the Center of Health and Wellness in Asia.

Comments from both the delegates and speakers are enough to touch the heart of every patriotic Filipino: they gushed about the warmth and caring that Filipinos extended to them, expressed admiration for how advanced and world-class the Philippines' top hospitals are, and commended the expertise and competence of Filipino health and wellness professionals.

Indeed, "Embracing Wellness in the Hearth of Asia" was held on Oct. 20-25, but the event- and especially the Filipinos gave a positive, lasting impression of the Philippines and its people to the delegate and speakers.

The Filipino and international delegates to the Philippine Health and Wellness Tourism Summit 2008 in front of the presidential yacht Ang Pangult (The Philippine Star)

The international delegates to the first all-Filipino organized health and wellness tourism summit all agreed that branding the Philippines as "The Heart of Asia" for its medical tourism campaign is extremely apt: the Filipinos' warmth, friendliness and hospitality, together with the kindness, care and compassion they extend to visitors and patients, all come together to create an ideal network of emotional support that would speed up and better the quality of one's recovery from many ills- whether of the spirit of body.

Along with its branding at The Heart of Asia, the Philippines' official logo as medical tourism destination was also iunveiled during the summit. The logo shows a flower exuding the hues of the Phillippines flag. The petals are heart-shaped, with leaves rendered stylistically in a flowing ribbon shape. Altogether, it is a beautiful and meaningful image. A pure white luminosity glows from the center of the flower, while a golden dot of pollen floats at the side. The heart-shaped petals represent kindness and compassion. The colors herald patriotism and national pride, while the circular wholeness of the petals represents unity among the Philippines health and wellness providers. The white glow radiating from the center shows purity of intention and action. The golden dot of pollen represents the spark of knowledge, competence and skill that Filipino healthcare and wellness providers possess and subsequently share to their patients. The flowing, ribbon-shaped rendition of the leaves reminds of the flowing, healing strokes of the traditional hilot (Filipino massage therapy) as well as the Filipino belief that the harmonious flow of energies in wellbeing for one's body, spirit and relationships.

Overall, the flower images takes Filipinos back to their primal certainties about life and its cycles of renewal and rebirth, and suggests peacefulness, beauty and healing. The beauty of the flower design also represents the many beautiful locales and the hundreds, if not thousands, of tropical islands that are veritable paradise settings for medical tourists and wellness seekers.

Delegates Enjoy a morning wellness activity by fitness Experts at Gold’s Gym (Kellee HInshaw (circled in red (l)) (The Philippines Star)

Both the logo and branding are important introducing the Philippines as the Center for Health and Wellness in Asia and as The Heart of Asia. As Tourism Undersecretary for Health and Wellness Cynthia Carion said, the kind of emotional support given by the Filipinos is peerless and unique, and as shown by research on the immune system this helps the mind, body and spirit recover from a host of ills.

The inspiring effects of the logo and branding are obvious in how the summit's delegates already refer to the Philippines as The Heart of Asia in their feedback. Hopefully, the rest of the world would be smitten in similar fashion.

A Note from Seven Corners
Our International Provider Relations Coordinator, Kellee Hinshaw, attended the conference. The Philippine Department of Tourism invited her to attend the Philippine Health & Wellness Summit as a participant in their Hosted Buyer Program. She had the opportunity to visit some of the medical facilities in Metro Manila, and met with various physicians and hospital administrators while she was there. As Seven Corners aims to send our insured members to international medical facilities with the highest levels of quality care, she states, "I can say with confidence that the Philippines should certainly be considered as a top destination for healthcare in the medical tourism market."

About Seven Corners
Seven Corners is one of the industry's most experienced travel health insurance providers. The company serves leisure, student, business, government and missionary/volunteer travelers. It offers an extensive selection of international medical and travel insurance policies to U.S. citizens traveling overseas or foreign nationals visiting the United States. Seven Corners has thousands of policy holders and a worldwide network of 30,000 agents. The company created and maintains the industry's most comprehensive network of international health care providers that includes thousands of doctors, pharmacies and hospitals around the globe.

Seven Corners is a member of the United States Travel Insurance Association, is GSA certified and is currently pursuing a SAS 70 Type II compliant designation. In addition to travel medical insurance, Seven Corners also offers health care administration to the government sector. The company is privately held and headquartered just north of Indianapolis in Carmel, Ind. For more information about Seven Corners, please call 800-335-0611 or visit www.sevencorners.com.