The Aerotropolis model of John D. Kasarda ignited my fantasies about the future centers of life and health right form the start. When an airport could grow to a new form of a city, maybe a hospital can as well? «Healthopolis» would be the counterpart of Aerotropolis? The contemporary strategies for mega hospitals like in Danmark with the Aurora – New Odense University Hospital or in China with The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University make such ideas more realistic than ever.
What about existing hospitals, clinics and medical services at airports? I didn’t took long to find the following business models in the evergrowing manifold hospital landscape – however to retrieve precise data about these services isn’t always an easy story. My interest is founded by the increasing numbers of Digital Nomads, Remoteworkers and Coworkers too, having a lot of airport time and time for health checks and maybe even planning their trips in connection with airport health facilities and instant health services.
And I am almost sure it won’t take long before the huge conference Passenger Terminal Expo or the IATA and its Medical Manual for Aviation will focus in Airport Health as a needed service and quality feature too.
1. Suvarnabhumi Airport Bangkok – BKK – the medical services & shuttle model
– Treatment and counseling provided with two medical centers by Airports of Thailand (AOT) – initial support to primary healthcare units.
– The Bumrungrad Hospital (I already wrote about that hospital to be considered the first of 800 nationwide hospitals in Thailand) with a medical consultation and airport shuttle to the hospital
– The Bangkok Hospital with medical people doing consultation as well and an airport shuttle to the hospital
Quite an intense bundle of medical care as other hospitals and services are on site too.
2. Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport – DFW – the monitoring and instructional kiosk model
As a pioneer in installing one of the first Hands-Only CPR Training Kiosks and connected to a legendary live saving situation the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (see the 2 minutes video here) rised the awareness for «medical advice on the go». The initiative by the American Heart Association in Partnership with the Anthem Foundation is covering more and more airports to invite travellers to perform a CPR training. So far more than 25’000 have been educated at this airport to be informed and ready for Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation.
Model of a Blood Pressure Monitoring Kiosk as per a FDA Consumer Health Information
Desk-like kiosks for checking blood pressure for instance are already available in many places. Another device on the rise in the «world outside of the hospitals» with high people frequencey such as airports. Maybe the travellers are advised to monitor their health, they may be concerned or curious. In order to provide valuable informations as a kiosk clinic the guidance of healthcare provider and/or validation by an institution like the FDA is a must.
3. Schiphol Amsterdam Airport – AMS – the airport clinic by the airline model
The KLM Health Services – the format or walk-in ambulatory services like the «small, fast, minute clinics» for example by CVS (more than 1’100 – You’re Sick. We’re Quick. approach), the Walgreens Healthcare Clinic or the Concentra Onsite Health Centers connected to workplaces is well known at some airports around the world.
Here you find first aid and GP services, pharmacy, medical advice and facilities, repatriation and ambulance transport.
And there are more growing services like the AirportClinicM at Munich MUC (Europe’s first one), the Shadan Kokushukai Airport Clinic at Narita Tokyo NRT, the Raffles Medical Group at Changi Singapore SIN or the 24-hour Medical Services Clinic at Abu Dhabi AUH.
By the way: There is a new project in my home base Zurich Airport ZRH as well. The CIRCLE at Zurich Airport represents the logical next step for the airport’s retail centres. And within the seven modules there is a Health & Beauty space as well – to be opened in 2019.
The UniversityHospital of Zurich (USZ) will cover a space of 10,000 m² providing outpatient services with day clinincs, specialist consultations and different walk-in clinics.
The hospitals and medical services at airports. This chapter has not been totally written yet. Just think about mobile health solutions and more which comes along with the Digital Transformation in Healthcare – it will enhance the everyday quality at the airport.
Healthy travels, Maurice Codourey
The WOW hospitals blog 