According to statistics from the World Health Organization many countries in Southeast Asia have a significantly lower ratio of doctors to    general population when compared to countries like the U.S.A. and China, only Singapore comes close with 2.3 doctors per 1.000 people.   

However Indonesia and Thailand have a ratio of just 0.4 doctors per 1,000 people whilst other Southeast Asia countries are higher, with Vietnam at 0.8, the Philippines at 1.2, Malaysia at 1.6 per 1,000.

With increasing life expectancy and challenges such as the Covid 19 pandemic is healthcare in Southeast Asia heading towards a crisis? And how can advancing technology such as Health IT and Telehealth alleviate the pressure and increase the impact of the human workforce. And what can startups do to support the healthcare industry in S.E.A?

To answer these questions, I speak to Dr Tan Hui Ling, Managing Director of Bagan Specialist Centre (BSC) and Oriental Melaka Straits Medical Centre (OMSMC), for her insights.