missioncare chronicles

ShareHope invests in Consusafe, Taiwan’s largest surgical-dressings supplier, to develop medical supply channel.

2011-04-25T19:17:00.000-07:00

ShareHope invests in Consusafe, Taiwan’s largest surgical-dressings supplier, to develop medical supply channel.

ShareHope (8403-TW), the only medical supporting and logistic company listed in Taiwan formally announced it took a 46% participation in Consusafe, hence grabbing a controlling stake in a major surgical-dressing supply channel nationwide. According to ShareHope, this investment will strengthen the company’s core business, diversify market channels, lower purchasing cost, and enhance its R&D capability. All these benefits add value to ShareHope’s branding image and created a new milestone for its health supply group purchasing channel integration.

Founded in 1980, Consusafe is GMP, CE, and FDA certified, and is Taiwan’s largest manufacturer of surgical dressing and health supplies. It is licensed to produce and sell over 600 items, including surgical dressing supplies, respiratory care supplies, and anesthesia tubing supplies. Consusafe also operates a biotechnology platform that conducts new product R&D.

According to Dr. Fred Yang, board chairman of ShareHope, the scope of ShareHope businesses includes medical device leasing, health checkup services, medical specialty services, healthcare management and consulting, and medication and health supply group purchasing which currently accounts for 80% of its revenues. The company is running an innovative business model, and is expanding its market from northern Taiwan to the rest of the country and mainland China. Its customers include hospitals, pharmacies, and clinics. ShareHope is also introducing several new products to Taiwan, establishing a testing platform, and promoting SmartCare technology.

ShareHope’s competitive advantage comes from its three departments: health logistics, health management (health checkups), and medical specialty. The health logistics services provide customers with an efficient, tailor made, low-cost, and simplified group purchasing process. The health management department will benefit from the opportunity presented by the influx of more tourists from China. The medical specialty department hopes to provide medical device leasing and specialty services to 378 mid to small size hospitals it currently targets.

ShareHope considers M&A as expanding strategy. Revenue expected to increase 20-30%.

2011-04-25T19:14:00.000-07:00

Based on market forecast, the after-tax earnings per share of the newly listed company ShareHope (8403) is expected to be 2.4 dollar, and its annual revenue growth rate is projected to be 20-30%. ShareHope is considering domestic mergers and acquisitions to expand its medication and supply logistics, and clinic operation businesses. With regard to development in China, it is hoping to establish a strategic partnership with companies that share complementary goals.

Group purchasing of medication and health supply logistics accounted for over 80% of

ShareHope’s revenues last year. The rest of its revenues came from health checkup business (11-12%) and medical specialty service (6-7%). Earnings after tax for the first 3 quarters were 80.32 million dollars, or 1.9 dollars per share.
ShareHopes’ revenue in January reached a historic record of 130 million dollars due to a spike in customers’ orders before the Chinese New Year. Medication and health supply logistics generated revenues significantly higher than their average the previous year. Earlier this month, ShareHope signed a contract with the Ten-Chen Healthcare Network, a Taoyuan based healthcare supplier, adding another customer to its group purchasing platform.

Ten-Chen Healthcare Network, which is viewed as a typical healthcare provider in the Taoyuan area, operates two hospitals and will be an important contributor to ShareHope’s revenues in the future. Meanwhile, the Department of Health latest policy to recommend patients refill prescriptions for chronic medication from local pharmacies rather than from hospitals provides an incentive for local pharmacies to join the group purchasing platform offered by ShareHope. As indicated by ShareHope, the company is considering more M&A to broaden its channels among pharmacies and clinics.

ShareHope also hopes for a boost to its health checkup business from an expected influx of tourists and patients from the Chinese mainland. However the degree by which this will impact on ShareHope’s business is highly dependent on a loosening of the policies that still restrict the travel of Chinese nationals in Taiwan. Health checkup services provided by ShareHope now account for 30% of all health check up services in the Taoyuan, Hsin-Chu, and Miao-Li areas.

DAISY nurse March -- Wu Jia-Yun

2011-04-13T02:16:00.000-07:00

Nurse Wu Jai-Yun worked on the ventilator care unit for 6 years. The patients are all long term chronic respiratory dependent patients. Most of these patients are unresponsive and they stare blindly in the white ceiling every day and that may be the only thing they see day in and day out. Typically the nurse's duty can also be mundane and repetitious. But to nurse Wu, she sees her job is to not only take good care of the patients physically with compassion and enthusiasm but also provide emotional and spiritual support to the patients and their family.

She once had to attend to a 70 years old female patient who was ventilator dependent, and bed ridden after a severe stroke. Her condition wasn’t stable and the outlook was not too optimistic. The patient relied on machines to maintain her vital signs, and her primary caregiver was her daughter. When the physician discussed the DNR option for her mother, her daughter refused and insisted on aggressive resuscitation instead.

While interacting with the patient’s daughter, Nurse Wu Jia-Yun realized that there was a strong bond between the daughter and her mother. The daughter was not married and her mother was her life’s only focus. Losing her mother would mean lose her motivation for other things. Understanding the situation, Nurse Wu Jia-Yun made exception to the visiting-hours limitation, hence increasing the time available to the daughter to care for the patient. Ms. Wu also made efforts to improve the comfort level of the patient, by relieving her pain and providing spiritual support. Through interaction, she soon developed a very good relationship with the patient’s daughter. Ms. Wu helped the daughter cope and grieve. The patient’s daughter began to understand that since nothing could be done that would improve her mother’s condition, letting go may be the best way to relieve her mother from suffering. She eventually accepted the DNR option for her mother, and the patient passed away surrounded by her family in peace and dignity.

For Nurse Wu Jia-Yun, the core of good patient care is to maintain the patient’s dignity and improve his or her comfort during illness. The scope of care is also extended to the patient’s relatives. She demonstrated the core values of Min-Sheng Healthcare Network in:

■ Honesty：
1. Complete duties within timeframe.
2. Follow hospital and department policies and procedures.
■ Originality：
1.Involved in quality indicator monitoring, and in various quality improvement projects.
2. Involve in developing nursing continuous education.
■ Progression：
1. Pursued further academic degree while working at the same time.
2. Voluntarily attended nursing administration training course and was promoted as the deputy head nurse of the respiratory care center in 2010.
■ Excellence：
1. Proactively identifies patient and family needs/difficulties and provides recourses and support.
2. Patient and family satisfaction.
■ Sharing：
1. Is a clinical mentor and teaches new staff and nursing students; she is viewed by others as enthusiastic and a patient mentor.
2. Willing to cover extra shifts and support other units when there’s a staffing shortage.

Charity Concert held to promote senior care in Taiwan

2011-03-29T20:11:00.000-07:00

To promote and raise awareness about senior citizens’ welfare, the Yeezen Charity Foundation, and Min-Sheng Healthcare System held a charity concert Saturday March 12 in the morning in the lobby of Min-Sheng General Hospital. The Chairman of the board, Dr. Yang Min-Sheng donated a piano to Yeezen Day Care Center (the first day care center sponsored by the Taoyuan County Government), hoping to bring more music into senior citizens’ lives. The event was also attended by the head of the Social Welfare Bureau, Ms. Chang Shu-Hui, and section leader Mr. Hsu Min-Song.

The concert featured pieces performed by seven children of Min-Sheng staff ranging in age from elementary school to college students. They played scores of popular movies and other famous songs (such as Mariage D'amour, Through the Arbor Sundial Dream…) by Richard Clayderman and Keven Kern. The show ended with a performance of Dr. Yang on the Erhu fiddle.

A highlight of the concert came when eight senior citizens from Yeezen Day Care Center forming the “The Family of Pine, Cypress, and Bamboo” Chorus played the song “Happy Time”. The aim of the event was to bring a “LOHAS” environment to senior citizens, and the Family of Pine, Cypress, and Bamboo Chorus became a “happiness maker”, prompting songs, laughter, and sunshine for senior citizens. A found-raiser organized by foreign spouses selling chocolates was organized alongside the concert, and college student volunteers contributed to make this event a bustling festival.

According to statistics, there were 1.92 million people aged over 65 in 2000, accounting for 8.62% of the population in Taiwan. However, by 2009 that age group had swollen to 2.43 million, or 10.55% of the population, and it is expected that by 2050, 30% of the population will be aged over 65, making Taiwan’s population the second oldest in the world after Japan. To meet the needs of this growing population, the government encourages the establishment of various types of facilities for seniors. Day care centers offer a place for senior citizens whose relatives are working during the day, but demand for this type of centers far exceeds supply. Placing parents in senior care facilities is still culturally frown upon in the Taiwanese society, but it will be too late if we wait until the expending aging population becomes a strain on society to address the issue. This is why the Yeezen foundation wants to help the government by promoting high-quality senior care in the society.

Just like our parents would carefully choose the school we’d attend, it is now our responsibility to choose a safe and energetic day care center for our parents. For more information, please contact Yeezen Day Care Center. Address：no. 17 Ho-Shing Rd, Taoyuan City, Taiwan. Phone：886-3-3373488。

Daisy nurse Feb. -- Wu Show-Mei

2011-03-15T19:40:00.001-07:00

Ms. Wu Show-Mei has been working as a nurse ever since she graduated from school 13 years ago. Her passion for this career grew as her experience increased. Nurse Wu Show-Mei is now assistant nurse manager on the “VIP ward” (the unit that receives private-pay patients) where she has served for several years. From her daily clinical service, she has come to realize that sincerity and compassion are essential for good patient care. She also clearly understands that “Money is not everything” and that “Health is the greatest wealth.”
Here is an example from a real story:

Mr. Tzu was a senior executive at a company. He was admitted to the hospital with end-stage cancer, and because the disease had spread throughout his body he couldn’t undergo surgery. Although he has accepted his fate and try to face positively in the impending death, his primary nurse Ms. Wu soon realized that Mr. Tzu’s was consumed with worries on the future of his wife and young son. Nurse Wu built a good and trustful nurse-patient relationship with Mr. Tzu and his family. She facilitated a pastor upon patient's request to provide spiritual support to the patient and his family, and encouraged him to reflect on his life honestly. Thanks to her efforts, the patient was not afraid of death anymore, he felt at peace with himself and was able to express his feeling toward his family openly. After Mr. Tzu passed away, Nurse Wu assured the patient had proper wrapping of his body and accompanied Mr. Tzu and his family in the final journey of his life.
Nurse Wu meets Nightingale’s spirit of helping people with passion, patience, caring, attentiveness, and respect. She also reflects the core values of Min-Sheng’s Network through:

■ Honesty：
1. Has worked in this hospital for 9.5 years, therefore expressing her loyalty.
2. Pays attention to cost and expenses and never charges the patient wrongly.
3. Documents care in nursing notes accurately and thoroughly.

■ Innovation：
1. In 2009, her quality improvement project of “enhancing inter-shift communication” won the 2nd prize in the hospital-wide competition.
2. In 2010, her patient education poster won the 2nd prize in the nursing department competition.

■ Progression：
1. Actively attends ongoing educational programs, such as specialty trainings of OB/GYN and Pediatrics, mentor program, infection control and quality improvement.
2. Completed nursing administration training and was promoted to assistant nurse manager in 2010.

■ Excellence：
1. Selected as the “best nurse of the month” by patients in May, July, August, September, October, November, and December of 2010.
2. Received 52 compliment letters from patients after discharge in 2010.

■ Sharing：
1. As a clinical teacher, she provided instruction to new staff and nursing students, she is loved and trusted by her trainees.
2. She is willing to cover extra shifts and support other units when there’s a staffing shortage.
3. Proactively increased level of cleanliness and safety in the care environment and won the 2nd price in the hospital wide competition.

Min-Sheng Hospital is very fortunate to have such a fine nurse providing direct care to the patients at the hospital.

Dr. Yang Min-Sheng reflects on his life journey in an interview with the National Taiwan University Alumni Magazine -Part II

2011-03-14T01:20:00.000-07:00

A father and son’s big dream

Upon his retirement thirty years later, his son, Dr. Fred Yang came back from the United States with the ambition of not just carry on with his father’s business, but to expand it and make it more sustainable.

After receiving his M.D from NTU and completing his residency at the Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Dr. Fred Yang went on to study public health at Harvard and business management under Peter Drucker. As he was about to launch his own career in the U.S, he received a letter from his father urging him to come back to Taiwan.

Dr. Yang Min-Sheng recalls: “When we were at our old san-Min Campus we used to encounter operation bottlenecks. We hardly had any competitive advantage, and couldn’t deliver sustainable financial results and medical quality. Therefore I wrote to my son and asked him to come back”. Within two weeks Fred Yang had brought his entire family back to Taiwan. “I was surprised and deeply moved. My son had heard my plea.”

Turning a crisis into an opportunity

What Dr. Fred Yang saw was an opportunity. In order to establish a healthy financial structure, he appointed an American finance expert as Vice President. A project to build a new hospital got underway in 2001, but construction costs overrun, the SARS epidemic outbreak of 2003 and a reduction in reimbursements from the National Health Insurance led the hospital to face new financial challenges.

In 2007, Dr. Yang stunned everyone by entering a “sell and lease back” agreement for the hospital’s ground and building with Insurance giant ING. This move relieved the hospital from financial stress, and provided Dr. Fred Yang with the leverage to expand his healthcare business and to work towards fulfilling his dream of managing 100 facilities within 10 years through mergers and acquisitions.
In order to manage his growing healthcare business efficiently and effectively Dr. Fred Yang formed a management company, Health Care Corporation of Asia (HCCA) which he put in charge of HR, strategic planning, and finance for all the facilities of the Min-Sheng group. He invited Dr. Steve Chan, the former Minister for Health, as board chairman of HCCA.

Meanwhile, Dr. Yang formed another healthcare logistics company, ShareHope, to integrate purchases of medications and other medical supplies, as well as laundry service for all Min-Sheng facilities. Thanks to this centralized management, operations and logistics costs have been greatly reduced. Both ShareHope and HCCA are expected to be eventually listed on the stock market.

To keep improvements in quality in pace with the facilities expansion, Dr. Yang started recruiting doctors and professors from National Taiwan University such as Prof. Lee Yuan-The and Prof. Chang Yang-Chyuan. Today, nearly 80% of the doctors at Min-Sheng served at NTUH, and the improvement in quality was recognized through Joint Commission International hospital accreditation in 2006.

Dr. Fred Yang has successfully transformed and elevated Min-Sheng from simply operating hospitals to running a healthcare business. He is now ready venture in the Greater China market, and embrace opportunities in the biotechnology field.

Life after retirement

With his son firmly in charge, Dr. Yang Min-Sheng has been able to enjoy happy and carefree retirement. “He -Fred Yang- is accountable for the future of Min-Sheng. I am glad to see that he performs beyond my expectations.” What accompany Dr. Yang Min-Sheng these days are not scalpels and syringes, but books, poems, music, chess, golf, friends, and his wife.

轉自台大雙月刊第73期http://www.alum.ntu.edu.tw/wordpress/?p=10328

Dr. Yang Min-Sheng reflects on his life journey in an interview with the National Taiwan University Alumni Magazine -Part I

2011-03-14T00:25:00.000-07:00

Founder and chairman of Min-Sheng Healthcare Network, Dr। Yang Min-Sheng started his business as a one-man surgical clinic 35 years ago। He shared his clinic space with other physicians, so that patients would benefit from doctors of different specialties. Thirty-five years later, Min-Sheng Healthcare Network has become a healthcare enterprise operating 1200 beds. In this article we will learn about the history, growth and evolution of the Min-Sheng Healthcare Network. Its expansion strategies of “sell and lease back” and “merge and acquisition” completely broke the norms of the healthcare industry in Taiwan.

Inspired by Professor Dr. Yang Si-Biao

In 1959, Dr। Yang Min-Sheng graduated from Taipei Municipal Jianguo High School, and although he ranked in the top 5 in academic performance, it wasn’t enough to enter the medical school of National Taiwan University (NTU). Fortunately he was admitted to NTU medical school because a prospective student gave up on the opportunity. However back then, Dr. Yang’s real interest was not in medicine but in civil engineering. He didn’t concentrate on his studies and wasted plenty of valuable time outside school. One thing worth mentioning is that he began to learn Japanese which he was able to use later in life while participating in Rotary Club activities.

In his 3rd year in medical school, academic requirements began to be very tough, and he was forced to commit himself to studying in order to survive in the highly competitive medical student group। Not until he began his internship at the National Taiwan University Hospital (NTUH) in his 5th year, did he find his passion and enthusiasm toward medicine. Finally in the 7th year, he was top of his class in academic performance and he started to build the confidence required to be a good doctor.

When he started his clinical residency at NTUH, his mentor was Professor Dr। Yang Si-Biao। Professor Yang was a specialist in TB treatment. Back in those days, the technology was not very advanced, and diagnosis was mostly based on physical exams that require experience and expertise from the physician. Professor Yang was a very good role model for Dr. Yang Min-Sheng in terms of medical practice and caring for patients. Dr. Yang Min-Sheng decided to be a good physician like Professor Yang.

Choosing GI surgery as his specialty

For most medical students, surgery is the top choice of specialty, and Dr. Yang Min-Sheng was no exception. He recalls: “A surgeon looks very confident. When patients come to the hospital they look very sick, but they become energetic 2-3 days after surgery… this is so amazing.”

This was a time of constant surgical innovations, such as “finger fracture” for liver surgery created by the famous surgeon Professor Dr. Lin Tien-Yo, or open heart surgery and lung surgery. There were also many opportunities for young surgeons to further study overseas. For all these reasons and the fact that his other mentor, Professor Dr. Hsu Shu-Chien (the one who introduced him to the lady who would later become his wife) specialized in GI surgery, Dr. Yang Min-Sheng chose GI surgery as specialty.

There are many other teachers that Dr. Yang Min-Sheng also appreciated, such as Professor Lin Huai-Shan who taught histology, Professor Yeh Shu who taught pathology, and Professor Yeh Chia-Ying who taught Chinese. Dr. Yang Min-Sheng learned how to be a good physician from these talented and compassionate mentors.

However, the memory of medical school is not all pleasant. Studying biochemistry was a nightmare. He was one of three students who failed in that subject, and Professor Chang Yu-Cheng (also the Chief Officer for Academics) didn’t give him a chance to appeal. “That was the only makeup exam I had in my entire life. The summer of my 2nd year made for the darkest days in my academic life” says Dr. Yang Min-Sheng.

Building confidence from being the leading actor in a stage-play

Dr. Yang Min-Sheng never participated in university extracurricular activities during his 7 years at NTU because of the heavy academic workload and his shy personality. The only exception was that he was accidentally chosen to be the leading actor in a stage-play called “The Ding-Sher Family (meaning: a rich family).” Dr. Yang Min-Sheng played the part of the father in the family and his natural and hilarious acting was loved by the audience. It also gave him the chance to interact with female classmates who had so far seemed to be “inaccessible.” This experience helped Dr. Yang regain his confidence.

Being tired of commuting between Taipei and Taoyuan everyday, he started staying at his classmates’ or private-tutoring students’ places. In his 5th year, he even lived at the medical school’s old library located next to the morgue. Says Dr. Yang: “I didn’t mind it at all. It was a very quiet and a good place for me to study at night.”

TB infection motivated him to open his own hospital

In his 2nd year at NTUH, Dr। Yang contracted tuberculosis (TB) and underwent surgery as an inpatient। Without that experience, he wouldn’t have comprehended the pain and hardship of being a patient. “This happened a day when Professor Chen Kai-Mu (AKA: The Thunder God) told me to insert a patient with a Foley catheter. I was too busy and forgot about it. When Professor Chen visited the patient in her room later after surgery and the patient complained, he yelled at me for being forgetful. At that moment I began to vomit blood and was sent to the operation room immediately by my colleagues.” There he was tied to the surgery table and was inserted a bronchoscope rudely by an ENT doctor. I suffered during the entire examination process. I told myself, I wouldn’t do this to my patients in the future.” said Dr. Yang. Thanks to the operation by Professor Lin Tien-Yo, his disease was cured, however difficulty urinating and emptying his bowels after surgery made Dr. Yang experience the sufferings of being a patient again. He says “I was so bored staying in a hospital. The only things I was looking forward to were the visits by my primary nurse everyday.”

At first his goal was to be a successful plastic surgeon, but he didn’t receive a recommendation from Professor Hsu to study plastic surgery overseas. As a part-time physician at NTUH his income was limited, meanwhile he didn’t receive financial supports from his in-laws anymore. Furthermore, because his history of TB he had to alter his plans of being a physician overseas. Instead, he decided to open his own clinic in his hometown of Taoyuan City.

With his reputation from training at NTUH, Dr. Yang’s surgical clinic attracted many patients and its business did very well. In order to better serve his patients, he opened his clinic space to other specialists. If patients needed a surgery that Dr. Yang couldn’t perform himself, he would invite other specialist to the clinic to operate on them. Thanks to this service, patients no longer needed to travel to Taipei for specialty surgeries and treatments. He also opened several branch hospitals and nursing homes in rural areas of Taoyuan. “When I earned 10 thousand dollars, I dreamed of contributing 50 thousand dollars to society. When I got 100 thousand dollars, I dreamed of contributing more. My goal is to continuously realize dreams.”

Dr. Yang Min-Sheng retired from clinical service two years ago. Over his career he has helped relieve the pains from disease of countless patients, but what always brought Dr. Yang the greatest feeling of accomplishment was to help patients solve their financial difficulties. “In those days physicians had more autonomy and freedom. We could freely decide how to charge a patient. Take an Appendectomy for example; we would charge wealthy patient $30,000. But for a poor patient, a chicken was good enough to pay for the surgery. We robbed the rich and helped the poor. Like a gentleman thief. We often solved the patients’ physical and emotional problems, and won their respects and friendship.” This good patient-physician relationship motivated Dr. Yang Min-Sheng to keep moving.

轉自台大雙月刊第73期http://www.alum.ntu.edu.tw/wordpress/?p=10328

Share-Hope Medicine to work with Penghu Hospital and cooperate on cardiovascular medicine services.

2011-03-08T23:19:00.000-08:00

Share-Hope Medicine (8403) officially announced that it will cooperate with Peng-Hu Hospital (operated by the Department of Health) in providing cardiovascular medicine services to the hospital.

Based on an internal information source, the cooperation agreement also calls for other large-scale projects in developing phases. The news is expected to boost the profits of Share-Hope Medicine since the profit margin for medical specialty services exceeds 30%, or twice the business average. Last year, medical specialty services accounted for 6.17% of Share-Hope Medicine revenues, a figure which according to a consensus forecast is set to grow to 10% thanks to the increase in profit margin associated with this type of services (33.5% last year).

The project, officially launched March 1st 2011, is Share-Hope’s first medical specialty joint venture, and its first operation site outside the Taiwan mainland. According to Share-Hope Medicine, the venture with Penghu hospital and other future large-scale projects will be beneficial to the company and contribute to its profitability.

Ninety thousand people live in Peng-Hu County, an archipelago of more than 60 islands located in the Taiwan Straits. Medical resources have historically been limited and Peng-Hu Hospital has received less support from the Department of Health than similar hospitals in Taiwan. Emergency and critical care patients are invariably evacuated to Taiwan’s main-island, which delays the treatment of these patients. According to the census of the Department of Health, total medical expenses related to cardiovascular diseases were around 170 million last year in the county. Nevertheless, there isn’t currently adequate cardiovascular specialty equipment on the islands. Penghu Hospital is the largest hospital in Peng-Hu County, and this cooperation agreement with ShareHope will make it the only hospital in the county to provide cardiovascular medical care. With this agreement Share Hope wants to strengthen the availability and quality of healthcare for the population and visitors of Penghu.

A leading brand of integrated medical supporting service, ShareHope Medicine was officially listed on the stock market March 1st 2011.

2011-03-08T23:12:00.000-08:00

Beating of the gong at the celebration ceremony attended by President Yang Min-Sheng, Board Chairman Fred Yang, CEO of GreTai Securities Market Mr. Wu Yu-Qun, and CEO of Capital Securities Corporation Mr. Chow Kang-Ji.

Board Chairman Dr. Fred Yang made a speech

DAISY nurse Jan. 大園敏盛彭淑梅 Peng Shu Mei

2011-02-07T21:24:00.000-08:00

Although Taiwan enjoys a vibrant economy, pockets of poverty still exist and families among minority groups still need help to survive. Mr. and Mrs. Lee are typical examples. Mrs. Lee had been in coma and in the vegetated stage after a stroke and being cared for by her husband at home for months. Ms. Peng Shu-Mei RN, a home care nurse and case manager for the Lee family, played an important role of being a communicator, counselor, moderator, and listener. During July 13th to December 28th 2010, nurse Peng Shu-Mei arranged physician home visits for Mrs. Lee, but also proactively led the care team to brainstorm and tried to figure out the best way to provide more appropriate and individualized care. Here are some examples of her great work:
1. The patient’s need is not the only concern for Ms. Peng. She tried to identify the problems of the whole family by interviewing the patient’s husband, mother, son and brother. She encouraged the entire family to express their concerns and difficulties and helped to obtain resources from the community.
2. After identifying family’s financial difficulty, Ms. Peng helped the patient obtain a free O2 concentrator machine, a nebulizer, and other medical devices, and educated the family members about the usage, cleaning, and maintenance of those devices.
3. During home visits, Ms. Peng also discovered the pressure and psychological burden of the primary caregiver. She provided adequate mental support and encouragement for Mr. Lee. She assisted Mr. Lee to do “life review” about Mrs. Lee. By doing so, she encouraged Mr. Lee to build a positive attitude toward life.
4. She proactively contacted social service that helped located a charity long term care center that can take ventilator patient.
5. She obtained free ambulance for the patient's transport to the center, helping to lighten the family’s financial burden even more.

Thanks to Nurse Peng’s efforts, now Mrs. Lee has settled down in a charity institution. Mr. Lee was able to get a job and can still visits Mrs. Lee very often.

Details matter. Ms. Peng distinguished herself by paying close attention to the plight and taking care of the whole family of the patient, and not only conducting routine nursing works. Nurse Peng has been an employee of Min-Sheng Health System for 12 years. She has constantly take care the patient and family in an exceptional manner and performed beyond her job responsibilities. She has consistently gone out of her to helping others. She deserves the DAISY award because she met the MS health care core values of trust, professionalism, innovation, excellence, and sharing. Her performance inspired other nurses, and reminded other nurses the reason for choosing nursing as a profession, which is to be the guardian to the patient and family.

The Third Min-Sheng Cup Baseball Tournament

2010-12-16T18:27:00.000-08:00

The "Min-Sheng Cup Baseball Tournament," funded by Min-Sheng Health Care System and co-sponsored by the Taoyuan County Government, entered its third year at eight o’clock on November 13, 2010. The grand opening took place at the Taoyuan International Stadium and was attended by leading local government personalities such as Taoyuan County Governor Mr. Wu Zhi-Yang and Taoyuan City Mayor Mr. Su Chia-Ming, who expressed their support for the event. Min-Sheng’s Chairman Dr. Yang Min-Sheng also called on hundreds of colleagues to join the festival.

To kick-off the show, the Aviation City Baseball Team led by their head coach Mr. Li Ju-ming performed a choreography to the tune of a popular song. Although many Min-Sheng staff were not able to attend this event, they still expressed their enthusiasm and cheered by participating in the "Go~Min-Sheng Cup" Video, which was produced by the staff themselves.

Asked about the reason for launching the Min-Sheng Cup Baseball Tournament three years ago, Chairman Yang replied “Because we have the vision of developing more local baseball players like Wang Jian-Ming”. In his speech, recalling the establishment of the 2000-beds Min-Sheng Healthcare System from scratch 35 years ago, he expressed his sincere appreciation to those who ever helped him. Supporting the game of baseball, which fills the dreams of many children, is another way to show his appreciation.

According to the Taoyuan the County Sports Committee Chief Officer Mr. Liao, the funding provided by Min-Sheng greatly enhanced the morale of many baseball teams. Thanks to these subsidies, the teams can be accommodated comfortably when they join tournaments abroad, and their coaches have greater confidence to lead the team to perform at their best.

Chief Art Officer and director of this event, Ms. Yang Yi-Shan, said that over the years the competition has been expanded to include teams from little league to senior league, and big league. Although originally limited to teams from Taoyuan County, the tournament now also attracts teams from Hshin-Chu, Miaoli and Taipei counties. “Although Min-Sheng’s financial contribution is not significant, its influence and vision may last long”, said Ms. Yang. Along with the baseball games are other activities designed to attract public attention and support for the tournament. The closing ceremony is scheduled for December 5, 2010, and will be followed by a fund-raising concert December 12.

Johns Hopkins Faculty speak on Public Health at Min-Sheng General Hospital

2010-10-27T01:12:00.000-07:00

Saturday December 23, Min-Sheng general Hospital played host to an international symposium on Public Health Policy jointly organized with the Taoyuan County Public Health Bureau. The organizing committee had invited prominent academics from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, the world’s leading institution dedicated to the training of public health professionals, to share their experience on a variety of topics.

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Dr. James Yager, Professor in Preventive Medicine at the School, spoke about environmental determinants of cancer and possible strategies for the prevention of certain types of cancer. Rapid industrialization and the life style changes resulting from economic development are contributing to make cancer a global health problem; Dr. Yager elaborated on the opportunities and challenges for prevention that this presents.

Dr. Leiyu Shi, Professor in Health Policy and Management and co-director at The Johns Hopkins Primary Care Policy Center for the Underserved, told about the benefits of advancing primary care to improve community health. The topic is particularly relevant at a time when health care costs are spiraling out of control in many countries and governments are looking for ways to rein in expenditure.

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Dr. Chiang Tung-Liang, Professor and Dean of the College of Public Health at National Taiwan University and one of the fathers of the National Health Insurance in Taiwan, presented the achievements and short comings of the universal coverage system, and looked at the future of public health in the ROC and at the challenges still laying in the way of health equity.

For Min-Sheng General Hospital the symposium was another opportunity to reaffirm its commitment towards improving the health of the population of Taoyuan County, while raising its profile and profess its international ambitions.

The Dialysis Center at Min-Sheng General Hospital serves local patients and foreign visitors alike.

2010-10-17T20:32:00.001-07:00

When Prince Court Hospital in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, looked for a dialysis center to treat one of its patients planning a trip to Taiwan, it contacted Min-Sheng General hospital to make the arrangements. This episode underlines the plight of thousands of people with renal problems who require dialysis several times a week, whether they are at home or traveling abroad. People with such conditions should not be deterred from traveling; they just need more planning and attention.

The Dialysis Center at Min-Sheng Hospital is the perfect place for this type of travelers. The 56-bed center is equipped with the latest Fresenius machines and is staffed with four nephrologists, forty-two nurses and two technicians. The center which offers Conventional Hemodialysis, High efficiency Hemodialysis, High flux hemodialysis, and Peritoneal Dialysis is open six days a week (from Monday to Saturday) from 7:30 in the morning until 10:30 at night for the greatest convenience of the patients.
With a focus on quality care and safety, the center implements strict infection control procedures; hollow fibers membranes are single-use only, all the equipment goes through stringent daily monitoring and is maintained by a team of in-house experienced technicians. In 2009, Min-Sheng General Hospital’s Dialysis Center was surveyed by Joint Commission International (JCI), the international arm of Joint Commission the body that reviews all hospitals in the USA, and became the first hospital in the world to be awarded CCP (Clinical Care Program) Certification for its chronic kidney disease program.

Foreign visitors in need of dialysis treatment while staying in Taiwan are welcome to the center. Advance booking is required and treatment can be tailored to meet personal requirements. People interested in using the services of the Dialysis Center should contact the International Healthcare Department of Min-Sheng General Hospital that will make the necessary arrangements.

Min-Sheng General Hospital receives Gold Award for English Service

2010-10-17T20:28:00.000-07:00

Min-Sheng general Hospital was presented with the Gold Award for English Services by the Executive Yuan, the of the government of the Republic of China (Taiwan). The award is given to Taiwanese institutions and businesses that offer English-friendly environment and service to their patrons, following a thorough investigation by the China Productivity Center that includes on-site visits by English speaking foreigners.
Min-Sheng General Hospital embarked several years ago in a program aimed at turning the hospital into an international center of excellence. An International Health care Center was established to lead and assist in the changes, and become the service platform between Min-Sheng and its international patients and partners. Foreign patients at Min-Sheng General Hospital will find English signage throughout the hospital, most documents (e.g. doctors and fees schedules, medicine instruction sheets, admission and consent forms, etc.) in English, and staff proficient in several languages ready to assist with translation if necessary. The hospital also set up an English website and two blogs to inform foreigners living in Taiwan and abroad about its services and activities.

Patients who travel to Min-Sheng General Hospital from overseas for surgical packages organized by the hospital’s International Health care Center are assigned an English speaking case manager who assists them at every step of their stay, ensuring seamless service and a comfortable experience.

The Unheralded Hero. Lab Technician Mr. Chang has been donating blood for years

2010-08-29T22:01:00.000-07:00

During Min-Sheng General Hospital’s 35th anniversary celebrations a 33 years old lab technician, Mr. Chang Song-Haw, was commended for his long term contribution to hundreds of patients who need blood transfusions. During the past 10 years, he has donated his blood about 280 times, providing nearly 70,000 c.c. of blood platelets. Giving blood every other week, it has become a habit of Mr. Chang’s daily life, and as a lab technician it has become a second career.

His determination began when Mr. Chang served in the military in Kin-Men where medical resources were very limited. After witnessing servicemen lose their life due to a lack of available transfusion blood, Mr. Chang became committed to save other’s lives by donating his own blood. After completing his military service, he became a frequent guest at blood donation stations.

What Mr. Chang donated was not regular whole blood but blood platelets. This usually makes for a more painful experience and a longer recovery time. The needles used to draw blood have left marks and scars on his arms, but Mr. Chang says with a smile of accomplishment: “Although it hurts, I will still keep doing it. A little piece contributed by everyone will make a big difference to make the world better”.

His persistence truly makes him an unheralded hero who deserves recognition.

Min-Sheng celebrates its 35th anniversary with the community

2010-08-09T23:19:00.001-07:00

Min-Sheng Healthcare System celebrated its 35th anniversary July 20, 2010, marking more than a third of a century of service to the people of Taoyuan. At exactly ten o’clock in the morning the celebration started with a stairwell race and a reunion of twins born at Min-Sheng Hospital over the past few years.

Min-Sheng’s President and founder, Dr. Yang Min-Sheng, accompanied by Min-Sheng General Hospital’s superintendent, Dr. Chang Yang-Chyan, presided over the ceremony. Among the various representatives of the local government and the community that also attended were Mr. Lee, Deputy Magistrate of Taoyuan County and Mr. Su Jia-Ming, Mayor of Taoyuan City.

President Yang expressed his gratitude for the long-time support and encouragements from the community. Over the past 35 years, the scope of health care services offered by Min-Sheng Health care System has mirrored the growth and development of the Taoyuan community. Dr. Yang pointed out that “The Min-Sheng Health care system could not have been successful without the trust and compassion of the people from the Taoyuan community”.

Twins and babies born prematurely at Min-Sheng Hospital in recent years helped cut the birthday cake before treading the cat walk for a fashion show, while their mothers were exchanging advice and experience on raising twins.
Participants to the stairwell race walked 1200 steps up and down the hospital’s 23 floors. This activity was part of the “Green Life” campaign that encourages people to climb stairs rather than use elevators in order to save electricity. Officers from the Taoyuan Police Bureau and Fire department also joined in the race.

Wishing you’d attended this year’s events? Don’t worry; you’ll get another opportunity next year.

Congratulations! Smart Care Health Care Services Reaches 5000 Members

2010-06-07T18:52:00.000-07:00

Having only been formally launched in December of last year, Smart Care Intelligent Health Care Services already has more than 5000 members. Smart Care uses health care professionals in conjunction with information technology, personalized medical care and home remote management. This innovative concept of medical care services, termed houspital (House + Hospital), is the new standard for fully discharged patients who suffer from chronic diseases.

Smart Care has been added to Min-Sheng’s service network of institutions which includes Min-Sheng General Hospital, Sheng Hong Pharmaceutical Co., Min-Sheng’s Da Yuan campus,the Jing-Guo campus VIP Health Clinic, Min-Sheng’s long term nursing care agencies, five network hospitals and Min-Sheng’s community pharmacy services. All of these form a service network which provides a continuum of care for patients, enhancing the quality of health care services. Moreover, Min-Sheng’s JCI designation continues to serve the spirit of medical care while also symbolizing its commitment to giving patients a peace of mind.
Members of Smart Care can 1) use phone services 2) internet services 3) and automatic transmission measuring instruments that can upload physiological information based on their physical health. Members also have access to telephone care, health management services, appointment reminders, and telephone hotline services for consultation. The traditional medical model of risk management can be difficult to understand after discharge, therefore by using information communication technology and innovative service concepts, the hospital moves from passive to active, and even if the patients are at home, they have complete control of their physical health conditions, opening up a new type of doctor-patient relationship.
Smart Care is located in the basement of Min-Sheng’s Jing-Guo campus. The center is an important base for the development of remote health care. It also provides a comfortable environment where patients can enjoy free blood sugar and blood pressure measurements.
General Manager Xu commented that Smart Care is shaping the future of health care services. He estimates that as early as 2015, everyone will be able to have their physiological information automatically uploaded. By then, the role of health care providers and the doctor-patient relationship will have been completely transformed!

Da-Yuan Min-Sheng Hospital Celebrates 18 Years of Quality Cardiopulmonary Service

2010-06-07T18:51:00.001-07:00

Da-Yuan Min-Sheng Hospital was established 18 years ago on April 6. This 18 year anniversary happens to coincide with Min-Sheng Health Care System’s 35 year anniversary. In response to the population structure and changes in the health care system, Da-Yuan Hospital has evolved from an outpatient and community based hospital to a long-term care service provider. Min-Sheng’s Chairman Yang stated, “Da-Yuan Hospital has steadily grown its business in recent years, while becoming an integral part of the system’s overall development strategy.”
Dr. Hong-Ren Yang, who previously served as president of Da-Yuan Hospital, said that the successful transformation of the hospital over the past three years has produced outstanding results. He also thanked colleagues and fellow villagers for paying their support! He hopes to more accurately position the hospital, providing residents with the most consistent and high quality services. Current hospital president, Dr. Chang, said his team will establish goals for the future while meeting health care policies and assessing the feasibility of restoring emergency services.
The anniversary celebration was held on April 8 in the district hospital lobby. Some of the activities included watching a video of the hospitals transformation and growth over the years, recognition of outstanding senior staff, a birthday ceremony, a charity event, free blood pressure and blood glucose measurements and a concert performed by local elementary school students. The proceeds from the charity event held that day will be donated to those living in the Da-Yuan rural community so they can receive medical care.

Chung-Li Min-Sheng Hospital Off to a Great Start!

2010-06-07T18:48:00.000-07:00

Following phase 1 of an NTD100 million hospital project begun on September 4th, 2009, the second phase of the project, the construction of the nursing home, began on March 26 with an 11 am groundbreaking ceremony. The project, which is expected to be completed in 2 months time, will provide 98 professional nursing care services to cope with the increasing disability and dementia care needs of Chung-Li residents.
Nursing home care can cover patients ranging in age from 0 to 99 years old. According to Ministry of the Interior, by the end of 2009, as many as 70,000 handicapped residents lived in Taoyuan County, many of them with very severe disabilities; however, the county only has a capacity to care for about 20 thousand disabled. Stay care facilities have a minimum age restriction of 60 years, but there are over 42,000 residents over the age of 60 with disabilities living in the county. Min-Sheng hopes to mitigate this problem by providing a convenient, central location, with a professional medical team backed up by quality nursing homes to provide better continuity of care, becoming a trusted choice for families.

Based on this idea, Chairman Yang decided to establish two major sections in the new Chung-Li center: a hospital and a nursing home. In addition to providing a full range of medical services, the hospital will have a strong medical team from National Taiwan University, and include services such as cardiovascular surgery, gastroenterology, renal medicine, neurology, family medicine, diabetes care, family medicine, general surgery, orthopedics, urology, ophthalmology and dialysis. More importantly, the Min-Sheng Health Care System will supply social workers from its Long-Term Care Division as part of the professional care team, ensuring the best quality care.
Long-Term Care Division Vice President Peng Xuan said, “The new nursing home area will add an additional 30,000 square feet of space to the general nursing home. Seeing that between 3% and 5% of residents suffer from varying degrees of dementia, this section has been specifically designed for different activities related to dementia, helping resolve dementia related problems such as security problems. They will also strengthen professional training services to provide better care for those suffering from dementia. Another important feature is providing single and double rooms designed to protect the privacy needs of residents while meeting the business philosophy of the chairman: ‘Don’t just cure, but care as well,’ ‘dedication to the implementation of dignity,’ ‘longevity and health,’ and ‘happiness is a principle of service.’”
Min-Sheng’s Long-Term Care Division currently has four locations and a total of 565 long-term care beds and after the new addition at the Chung-Li Nursing Home, it will have more than 663 beds.

Overseas Chinese Medical Professionals Visit Min-Sheng

2010-06-07T18:46:00.001-07:00

On March 18, 2010, on the recommendation of the Executive Yuan, a delegation of 30 medical workers from the Overseas Chinese Affairs Commission visited Min-Sheng to observe the results of its international and innovative health care services.

In recent years, two major areas of strategic development at Min-Sheng have been quality and innovation.
Min-Sheng has largely achieved this goal by becoming the first hospital in Taiwan to become JCI and JCIDSC accredited.

In addition to getting a detailed description of Min-Sheng’s history, the itinerary also included a description of the current health care system, the challenges of becoming JCI accredited, diversification, successful integration with international medical institutions, and finally the development of strategic cross-border alliances. Afterward the delegation took a tour of the Medical Cosmetic Center, VIP Health Center, and the Telemedicine Center. The members of the delegation were especially interested in Smart Care Inc. and appreciative of General Manager Xu Mingxin’s explanation of the innovative services arising from telecare.

Congratulations! Taiwan's First Breast Imaging Center Established In Taipei

2010-05-28T00:30:00.000-07:00

Min-Sheng Health Care subsidiary RadEx has once again come up with another medical breakthrough as Taiwan’s first remote video medical services firm. In the third year of developing its remote imaging technology, it has established a base in Taipei, working together with Yong-Cheng Clinic to build Zhi Zhang Dao Breast Imaging Center.
Zhi Zhang Dao Breast Imaging Center provides Taiwan's first exclusive breast screening clinic-based health examination. The clinic provides a unique space for privacy and comfort to conduct examinations, and a dedicated health care case manager to provide advisory assistance. Additionally, patients have other professional specialists at their disposal to explain and discuss the breast screenings.
RadEx is the first long-distance breast imaging platform that meets the needs of medical institutions to provide high quality professional breast imaging resources. Images are sent through a wireless network to be inspected and then immediately sent to RadEx for interpretation, allowing physicians to work more efficiently by improving the timeliness of reporting and the quality of response.

From start to finish, Min-Sheng Health Care System spared no expense in promoting medical innovation and service. RadEx has also continued to uphold the belief that long-distance medical imaging services provide females with more professional, private, and timely breast check options.

Dr. Hsieh Huan-Fa to Serve as Long-Tan Hospital Superintendant

2010-04-13T19:51:00.000-07:00

星期四, 三月 18, 2010

The inauguration of the new superintendant of Min-Sheng Medical System’s Long-Tan Hospital was held on March 2, 2010 in the Long-Tan General Hospital Conference Room.

CEO Yang stated that the former superintendant, Dr. Liu, would be transferred to headquarters to work as a senior consultant in the implementation of important tasks. The new superintendant, Dr. Hsieh, is a former National Defense Medical College Clinical Professor of Surgery. In addition to his experience as a research fellow at the University of Tennessee Oncology Center, Dr. Hsieh is experienced in breast surgery, digestive surgery, digestive endoscopy and endocrine surgery.

During the ceremony, Dr. Hsieh vowed to develop a more comprehensive medical plan while developing good physician groups for the Long-Tan General Hospital. He also emphasized that during his term in office, former superintendant, Dr. Liu had laid a good foundation to bring the residents of Long-Tan a peace of mind. He further added that they would still need his expert advice in the future.

Superintendant Hsieh Huan-Fa’s Areas of Expertise:
Breast disease, hernia surgery, hepatobilary and pancreatic surgery, thyroid cancer surgery, laparoscopic gallstone surgery, stomach and duodenum surgery, hemorrhoids and anal fistula surgery, breast cancer surgery, stomach cancer, colorectal cancer, and liver surgery.

2010-02-28T20:05:00.000-08:00

期五, 二月 19, 2010
Sheng Hong Pharmaceutical Co., Inc. Among Asia-Pacific’s 500 Fastest Growing Technology Firms
Deloitte Global recently held a presentation ceremony in Hong Kong in which it named Sheng Hong Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. the 31st fastest growing company in Asia Pacific.
Deloitte and Touche, one of the world’s top four accounting firms, has held this annual event, “Deloitte Asia-Pacific Technology’s Fastest Growing 500,” since 2002. The thousands of technology firms across the region are ranked according to their 3 year revenue growth rates. At the same time, they send out their Fastest 500 CEO survey. Taiwan had 99 high tech enterprises ranked in the survey, the most in the Asia Pacific region. Sheng Hong was ranked 8th overall in Taiwan and 1st in the pharmaceuticals category.
Since its inception, Sheng Hong Pharmaceutical Co. has had strong support to expand its business scope and continuously improve service quality in order to gain wider market recognition. The revenue growth rate reached 796% over the past 3 years. Despite these violent fluctuations in the business cycle, Sheng Hong has maintained excellence in business performance!
Mr. Lin, an executive at Deloitte, commented that Sheng Hong Pharmaceutical stands out among the other firms which were awarded due to its progressive management team, which has established a new model of development in the medical community. He added that using revenue performance to evaluate firms is a good way to assess enterprise value and operational strength. It represents the stability of the existing business base while implying the potential of enterprise development.
Chairman Fred Yang commented that revenue growth in the global business environment has been in a general decline. However, Sheng Hong uses innovative service concepts of medical integration and a wealth of medical experience and professional capabilities to enhance profit and value. Finally, he added that this international award serves as proof that Sheng Hong has indeed enhanced value while at the same time, it’s gained sufficient confidence to continue to achieve the company’s vision and strategy step by step.
位於 2/19/2010 11:09:00 上午 4 意見

2010-02-28T19:55:00.000-08:00

星期二, 二月 09, 2010
National Taiwan University Min-Sheng Diabetes Center to Publish Research on Breakthrough Treatment of Diabetes
Gastric bypass surgery can cure type II diabetes! National Taiwan University and Min-Sheng Hospital announced the results of its collaborative research regarding Type 2 diabetes.
At present, Taiwan has more than 1 million people with diabetes, but more than half of these cases have not been treated effectively, resulting in blindness, kidney dialysis, and multiple other complications in the future.
After 3 years of clinical trials, the research teams from National Taiwan University and Min-Sheng have succeeded in proving that type II diabetes is a gastrointestinal disease and that gastrointestinal surgical methods can be an effective treatment for the disease. Further, they determined that the most important factor determining the efficacy of treatment is the length of time one has suffered from the disease. The results of this study are a major breakthrough.
Since the discovery of insulin, diabetes has been considered a pancreatic disease. This concept in type I juvenile diabetes is correct. However, in over 90% of type II diabetes cases, this assessment may be incorrect. In recent years, the medical community has found that the regulation of sugar absorption and insulin secretion in the gastrointestinal tract may have caused hormonal problems which in turn may have led to the occurrence of type II diabetes.
The research partnership was co-chaired by Professors Lee Ming-Chuang and Li Wei-Jie. They randomly selected 60 patients with type II diabetes at an average age of 45 . They split these patients into 2 groups, both receiving surgery. The first group received a simple stomach surgery which reduced the size of the stomach in order to more effectively treat the patients at a reduced weight. The second group’s surgical method consisted of gastric bypass surgery, effectively restructuring the gastrointestinal tract. The post operative groups had the same degree of weight loss, an average weight reduction of 25 kg, however, the group receiving the gastric bypass surgery had a much better outcome than the first group. 93.3% of patients in the second group met the standard cure for diabetes, whereas only 46.7% of those in the first group were cured.
The results indicate that the length of time one suffers from diabetes is the most important factor to consider when deciding upon the correct treatment. For those suffering from diabetes for less than 5 years, the pancreatic secretion of insulin is good and the stomach reduction surgery will be very effective. On the contrary, those suffering from the illness for longer than five years need the gastric bypass surgery to get better results.
Mr. Su, a 47 year old diabetic, has suffered from high blood pressure and diabetes for two years. He was taking one type of hypoglycemic and two kinds of blood pressure medications. After witnessing a friend suffer a stroke due to complications arising from diabetes, Mr. Su became very nervous, prompting his decision to have the surgery. After the surgery, his blood pressure and blood sugar levels have become normal. Now, he’s proud to share with others the fact that he no longer has to take any medicine, instead relying on daily acupuncture treatments.
Another patient who received the surgery, 45 year old Mr. Mo, had dealt with diabetes for 10 years while taking countless medications. Six months ago, doctors told him that the index of his renal function was slowing increasing. After the surgery, his blood sugar levels returned to normal and his health has been excellent.

The Rosa Garden, a health tourism medical park, was opened on January 22nd in Dasi.

2010-02-01T00:40:00.000-08:00

With the trend in medical tourism poised to take off, Min Sheng became active in the industry two years ago. Going along with the theme of medical, health and leisure, Min-Sheng integrated the VIP health examination, decompression treatment, and travel holidays into its package at Rosa Gardens. Dasi is one of the top destinations being developed for medical tourism in Taiwan. Not only was the Rosa Garden designed to create warm and elegant aesthetics, but the cuisine offered there was created by a famous chef, Mr. Chen Guanxun, blending Japanese, Chinese and Western cuisines together to lead a new wave of health food culture.

In all, the park can accommodate 65 guests and 12 banquet tables. The club house overlooks beautiful gardens, hillside pastures, and mountain vistas, inviting guests to enjoy nature’s embrace and the relaxed atmosphere.

CEO Yang stated that both food and medicine are part of the service industry, however, a healthy diet from the start ensures a happy life! Therefore, in order to achieve high diet standards, the kitchen at Rosa Gardens pays attention to ingredients of dishes, the amount of nutrients and the amount of calories because meeting the individual needs of different customers is not only Min-Sheng’s value, but its most important business philosophy. Additionally, the park provides a meeting venue with fishing, barbecues, karaoke and other recreational facilities.

Sheng-Hong Medical, Inc. Wins Golden Torch Award for Blue Chip Companies

2010-02-01T00:32:00.000-08:00

The system’s Sheng-Hong Medical, Inc. won the Republic of China’s 8th Annual “Blue Chip Company Golden Torch Award” for 2009, with the ceremony being held at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Taipei.

Annual Golden Torch Award winners are selected based on projects which include business growth, business performance, philosophy, corporate culture, and future vision and planning. Although it certainly wasn’t easy for Sheng-Hong to stand out among the many blue chip companies, it was chosen for its many forward thinking domestic programs.

Liu Ching-Wen, general manager of the company, accepted the award at the Taipei Grand Hyatt Hotel on behalf of the firm. He pointed out that the award is given for the pursuit of business continuity and growth in order to strengthen the competitiveness of business. He also stated that Sheng-Hong is a model for sustainable development and the driving force behind the promotion of innovative services, high quality standards, and high value products in the health care industry, and hopes to continue to be in the future.

Chairman Yang Hong-Ren added that Sheng-Hong provides innovative services to effectively assist the pharmaceutical sector to enhance competiveness. He went on to say that the company has seen stable growth and profitability over the years and that it will continue to grow with cross border exchanges and a view to becoming Asia’s premier medical services provider.

Yi-Ren Hospital Passes Accreditation

2010-02-01T00:27:00.000-08:00

The Department of Health released the results of hospital accreditation for 2009 and Yi-Ren Hospital, located in Yang-Mei, won the Award for Excellence. In Taoyuan county, only Yi-Ren Hospital and the Taoyuan branch of Chang Gung Memorial Hospital received the award at the level of district hospitals.

Yi-Ren Hospital was established in 1996 and in recent years, it has seen substantial changes and upgrades. For example, it has rolled out a new medical information system for intensive care unit bed expansion, introduced MRI technology, purchased color ultra-sound, as well as a digital mammography device and other high end medical equipment. Administrators have also cooperated with health authorities to promote various health plans, providing the public with a high standard of medical services.

In recent years, the hospital has received numerous certifications, including clinical laboratory ISO15189 certification and cervical cancer prevention and health care certification. Additionally, it has partnered with the National Taiwan University School of Management to create high-level training programs.

Current President Lin Zong-Xi took over in 2008 from Liu Qi-Tian; however, he still performs outpatient services every Thursday morning in the clinic, benefitting locals. He is renowned by locals for being an excellent practitioner of medicine. In 2009, President Lin led his team’s tremendous effort in establishing suicide prevention services and community medical groups. With regard to the award, he expressed gratitude to his colleagues for their efforts in passing the new hospital accreditation, calling it “a great blessing.”

Chairman Yang Awarded for Excellent Medical Management!

2010-02-01T00:20:00.000-08:00

Former system CEO and current Chairman, Dr. Yang Hong-Ren, was awarded the Mr. Lu Feng-Zhang Memorial Medal by the Republic of China Management Science Society on December 19th, 2009.

The award commemorates Mr. Lu Feng-Zhang’s contribution to the development of management science while encouraging outstanding young members to promote the study of management and application of management technology. Of the five who were awarded, Chairman Yang was the only one awarded for the actual application of management, as opposed to the academic research of it, which is truly rare.

Chairman Yang said that for clinicians to abandon their careers to become professional managers is an important decision. He went on to dedicate the award to all the teachers and friends in his life that helped him grow. He finished by stating his hope that more medical practitioners will apply management science practice and application in the medical industry for the medical community to create greater value.

Houspital, the New Concept of Promoting Smart Care

2009-12-15T19:45:00.000-08:00

With advances in medical technology, tele-monitoring medical products have become the latest trend in the medical community. A new vision for long-distance care has been established by intelligent medical technology companies utilizing high quality medical care and advances in information technology.

Smart Care Inc., a subsidiary of the Min-Sheng Group, has invested heavily in technological development and manufacturing. Strengthened by the backing of Min-Sheng’s internationally certified medical team, Smart Care has been able to provide the public with high quality, personalized medical care.

During the a ceremony at the company, Intelligent Medicine Chairman Yang Min-Sheng stated that “the family room, remote management,” the so called Houspital (House + Hospital), brings the wisdom of establishing an innovative care model which allows patients at home the continuity of long-distance home care services, along with the hospital’s professional health care team, achieving higher quality care and creating new industries.

General Manager, Xu Min-Xin said that the firm will provide Taiwan with professional care skills and experience in long-distance care, from the home side of physiological measurement equipment to information technology service care platforms to back-end services and the tele-care Total Solution. The company will serve more long-term care patients, chronic patients, and discharged patients. By the end of the year, Smart Care expects to have served up to 500 patients.

The Second Min-Sheng Cup Youth Baseball Tournament Held in Longtan

2009-11-30T00:25:00.000-08:00

On November 15, the Min-Sheng Health Care System sponsored the 2nd Min-Sheng Cup Youth Baseball Tournament at the Elephant Brothers’ baseball stadium in Longtan. To promote physical fitness activities, the Min-Sheng Cup Little League Final Four began in the morning. Afterward, world class cheerleading performances by Wu Han School ignited the atmosphere around the stadium. Then, Chairman Yang awarded the winners and expressed his sincere gratitude to those who attended the event.

Additionally, system staff members and their families made up 20 teams which took part in numerous baseball related activities, inducing feelings of joy and stimulating the team spirit of cooperation.

To conclude the festivities, all participating players, coaches, referees and colleagues threw their Min-Sheng Cup commemorative baseball caps in the air at the same time, culminating in a perfect ending. But, Min-Sheng’s commitment to baseball and physical fitness will continue. Chairman Yang concluded by calling for private and public sectors to work together to give domestic baseball a better environment and continue to shine.

Min-Sheng Awarded ISO 14001 Environmental Management System Certification

2009-11-19T23:01:00.001-08:00

As global climate change and sustainable development have become more salient, maintaining a balance between business and reducing environmental impact has become an important issue. Last month, the Environmental Protection Agengy awarded Min-Sheng SGS international certification of ISO 14001 for its environmental management system. The award signifies a big step forward for Min-Sheng in its quest to protect the environment and create a high quality medical care environment for the whole person.

In order to meet its environmental goals, the Safety and Health Department promoted waste reduction results and then began implementing the ISO 14001 environmental management system. The project took nine months to accomplish. The evaluation framework was based on a Plan-Do-Check-Act management structure, which emphasized compliance with environmental regulations, efficient use of resources, pollution prevention, emergency treatment and full environmental awareness. The verification experts conducted a written evaluation, field visits, and random personnel interviews.

The concept of environmental protection requires continuous work in the long-term. A high quality environment demands cooperation from everyone. In line with the concept of sustainable management and the standards of ISO 14001, Min-Sheng is focusing on advancing “pollution prevention, and subsequent “continuous improvement” to do its best to implement the concept of sustainable environmental development in every corner of society.

Representative of Federated States of Micronesia visits Min-Sheng Hospital.

2009-10-26T02:02:00.000-07:00

Mr. David Lai, the representative in Taiwan of The Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) visited Min-Sheng Hospital this week to discuss future cooperation.

Because of a lack of adequate facilities in the country, the FSM need to outsource some of its healthcare and Taiwan has emerged as an attractive destination for patients from these Pacific Islands. Taiwan offers excellent heath care in state of the art facilities, and is fairly well connected to the islands through Guam.

Mr. Lai stressed that Min-Sheng Hospital is particularly well placed to be the hospital of choice for patients from the FSM due to its proximity to the international airport, its commitment to safe and quality care, and the structure it has already implemented to deal with foreign patients.

President and COO of China Connection Global Healthcare visit Min-Sheng Hospital

2009-10-08T20:10:00.000-07:00

Miss Ruth Lycke and Mr. David Mair, respectively President and COO of China Connection Global Healthcare visited Min-Sheng Hospital early this month.
They were accompanied by Miss Grace Chen, CEO of Med Tourist Center and Mr. Warren Chen of Breita Technology.

China Connection Global Healthcare (CCGH) was the first Destination Healthcare Provider to coordinate treatment in China for international patients. CCGH is based in the American Midwest, and directs operations in China from its office in Tianjin.

China Connection Global Healthcare focuses mostly on Chinese and alternative medicine treatment for stroke victims and patients with neurological problems. However, they have recently extended their scope and decided to include more conventional procedures like cardiac, bariatric and orthopedic surgery.

Attracted by the quality of care available in this Taiwan, China Connection Global Healthcare is in the process of selecting a partner hospital in Taiwan to handle those cases. Executives from CCGH came to Min-Sheng Hospital to evaluate first hand the capabilities and processes, of one of Taiwan’s leading hospitals.

The visitors, who have a long experience and understanding of the health care and insurance industries, were very impressed by Min-Sheng’s commitment to safe and quality care, and the structure that it has developed to deal with foreign patients.

Min-Sheng’s RadEx Signs Cross Border Memorandum of Cooperation with Japan’s Doctor Net

2009-10-06T01:21:00.000-07:00

Despite the financial turmoil and the global economic downturn, the knowledge services outsourcing market has continued growing. Seeing its dazzling performance around the world, this economic knowledge and strength has been promoted heavily by the current government. Process outsourcing has become a trend in the development of knowledge in the service sector that is gaining more and more attention.

Presently, many well known countries consider the development of the knowledge services outsourcing industry strategically important. European companies began extensive use of knowledge services outsourcing to save costs, increase quality, and reduce time to market, causing the global knowledge services market to flourish.

The development of knowledge-intensive service companies in Taiwan has considerable advantages, such as a solid manufacturing base, a well-developed venture capital industry and the integration of Chinese resources and business markets. Additional advantages include the responsiveness of small and medium enterprises to environmental change, a high degree of flexibility, booming entrepreneurship, and excellent web services.

The Ministry of Economic Affairs Industrial Development Bureau will assist the entry of domestic businesses into the knowledge-based economy. The bureau invited domestic service outsourcing companies to share their experiences at a conference in Tokyo, Japan this August. After the meeting they arranged to visit the three largest long distance radiology companies in Japan. There they discussed business development and KPO. Min-Sheng Health Care System’s Rad Ex company was also in attendance.

The focus of the visit was Doctor Net, one of Japan’s three largest services companies. It was founded in 1995. In February 2002, the company restructured operations. It is located in Tochigi prefecture, Japan. It is Japan's first company founded by radiologists. 2007 revenues totaled 1.2 billion yen. In addition to providing a full range of remote radiological services, and investing in and helping a number of medical imaging center operations, it also develops and sells related software systems. The company is currently actively developing the overseas market. On April 30, 2009 ,Doctor Net, Japan's new high tech software company, the Chongqing Economic Information Committee, the Chongqing Municipal Health Bureau and the Asia Medical Diagnostic Interpretation Center-BPO gathered together for the signing ceremony. There will be a number of third level hospitals in Chongqing to cooperate with Doctor Net in the future. Further, it is planning to have 250 medical institutions to join in the next five years, in addition to an expected 250,000 radiology image interpretations per year. After three years, the Doctor Net transaction center will merge with Chongqing Imaging Center to become Asia's largest imaging center, with plans to offer services 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

Toshihiko Sato, head of Doctor Net, has a great interest in co-operating with Taiwan’s Rad Ex to jointly develop the Asian market, to establish a transnational network of radiologists, and to provide mutual support for remote interpretation services, resulting in greater medical value of claims. After the signing of the memorandum of cooperation, the two sides will cooperate towards technology platforms and professional OEM goals.

Business Times Interviews Min-Sheng’s Yang Hong-Ren

2009-09-21T01:46:00.000-07:00

The pursuit of quality medical care provided the courage to accept the challenge.
Min-Sheng has succeeded by virtue of human innovation and the creation of high quality medical teams.

Min-Sheng Medical Holding Co., Ltd.’s Chairman Yang Min-Sheng has continually been an innovator within the medical industry. He’s spared no efforts to enhance organizational competitiveness, expectations for Taiwan’s medical industry and to cultivate a new generation of leaders. Furthermore, he won the 2008 Human Innovation Award and under his able leadership, the group has continued its pursuit of quality medical care and sustained human innovation through the creation of high quality medical teams.

The initiation of external evaluation and quality certifications has been positive.

Sheng-Hong Pharmaceutical Company Limited, CEO Yang Hong-Ren stated that everyone in the Min-Sheng Medical Group knows that the chairman has spent a lot of money building Min-Sheng College. After he won the award, a wave of employees were inspired to receive further education within the community in addition to joining the system’s personnel development training system. At the same time, he began promoting the initiation of obtaining external evaluations and quality certifications, for example, JCIDSC, JCI-II, ISO 9001,14000 and so on. Even this year, there are plans to apply for two other international quality certifications.

Upon Min-Sheng College’s founding, Yang Hong-Ren stressed that the holding group will invest about 10 million TWD into the college each year, amounting to approximately 5,500 TWD per person or 7% of the average employee’s salary. The college provides a centralized place of study, thus encouraging employees to attend classes and promoting reading and culture studies. Furthermore, it has encouraged the establishment of cooperation with well known universities, establishing Min-Sheng’s EMBA credit classes. This has resulted in 20 employees receiving their master’s degrees over the past 3 years.

E-Learning and KM expand size and level

Yang Hongren further points to Mr. Chen, who in addition to being in charge of three-year training courses through Min-Sheng College’s ongoing cooperation with the National Taiwan University College of Management, he is also expanding the scale and level of e-Learning and KM. candidates.
Because the hospital is limited by the national health care system, and also because of the financial tsunami of the past year, investment in personnel training has become more conservative. Yang Hong-Ren stressed, however, that there are almost no other hospital systems which have established institutions responsible for personnel training in the same way which Min-Sheng has. Min-Sheng management has taken the initiative to colleges and universities by sponsoring industry-university cooperation programs, inviting Min-Sheng to recommend its course of study for suitable candidates. For example, National Central University is renowned in the field of human capital and Min-Sheng hopes to cooperate with them in the future, gaining a perspective from the health management direction and benefiting from the cumulative effect of the professional development of training.
Chairman Yang Minsheng won the Human Innovation Award "Benchmarking Leaders" for individuals. Yang Hong-Ren believes that the incentive provided by the Human Innovation Award to put forth the effort to improve the quality of personnel and to strengthen the competitiveness of enterprises will continue to hold. Also, he recommends the establishment of business clubs made up of award winning human resources directors which would organize seminars from time to time in order to exchange experiences and to allow for self benchmarking.

Min-Sheng Enters into Second Sale and Leaseback Agreement

2009-09-21T01:40:00.000-07:00

Following the ING sale and leaseback, the Min-Sheng Health Care System has entered into a second sale and leaseback deal, this time it is between the Min-Sheng Asset Management Company and Daidelianghang Co. Top executives from both companies were present during the contract signing ceremony which took place in the rotary hall on the 23rd floor of Min-Sheng’s Jin-Kuo campus.

The latest sale and leaseback agreement gives the Min-Sheng Health Care System more capital to enhance the quality of medical services in all hospital areas and standards. Furthermore, it displays Min-Sheng’s management expertise and international medical cooperation through the sharing of resources and a future that will be created together.

System CEO Yang Minsheng said that Min-Sheng and ING completed Asia’s first sale and leaseback agreement. The case was very famous in both Taiwan’s medical and financial sectors, yet thus far there have been no other sale and leaseback agreements in the area. The Min-Sheng Health Care System had lots of success because of the agreement, which provided plenty of capital investment in health care over the past two years. This time Min-Sheng has cooperated with a local real estate company, Daidelianghang Co. Besides continuing to pursue an asset management strategy, the group is also evaluating the feasibility of health care real estate securitization, bringing another important innovation to Taiwan’s medical community!

Sheng Hong Medical Company Welcomes Professor Huang and 5 Other Directors

2009-09-06T17:46:00.000-07:00

New independent directors: Professor Congxing (front left), Sun Li (front right), Hsiao Naizhang (back row fourth from right), Li line (front row second from right), Lin Pi-Yung (rear center)

For the smooth promotion of Sheng Hong’s over the counter listing application, five academic experts have been invited to serve on the company's board of directors, which has been composed of a strong line-up of independent directors who will work toward the goal of excellent corporate governance.

The new independent directors biographies are summarized below:

Independent director: Professor Huang
Professor Huang graduated from the Department of Electrical Engineering at National Taiwan University, and then attended the University of Texas at Austin in the U.S. to obtain a PhD in management. He is a current National Taiwan University School of Management professor and an independent director at Delta Electronics.

Independent director: Sun Li
National Taiwan Institute of Economic Research, University of Cambridge Ph.D. in economics.
Dr. Sun returned to the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research after his studies. He currently serves as the director of both the Hospital Biotech Research Center and the Intellectual Property Research Center. Further, he is considered a medical authority on the biotech industry.

Independent Director: Dr. Nai-Chang Hsiao
Dr. Hsiao Hsiao is chief operating officer of Hsiao Zhong Zheng Hospital. He received his MD from Boston University in the US. He’s a former Vice COO of the Xiu Quan Health Care System and CEO of Hou Sheng International Digital Technology.

Independent Supervisor: Professor Li
Professor Li is an international authority in the area of financial accounting. He received his PhD in accounting from New York University and later returned to Taiwan to teach. He is the former head of National Taiwan University’s Accounting Department. He is currently a cabinet member of the stock exchange and the Ministry of Examination Advisory Committee.

Independent Supervisor: Dr. Pi-Yung
Dr. Pi-Yung received his medical degree from National Taiwan University, as well as his MBA. He is currently director of University Optics Inc. and director of and the Ministry of Examination Advisory Committee.

System President Yang Min-Sheng pointed out that adding five distinguished scholars and experts of the medical profession as the company's independent directors affirms the efforts of Min-Sheng’s management over the past several years. Further, he stated that the strengthening of corporate governance is an essential condition for sustainable development which will ultimately take the operations and management systems to new heights!

Min-Sheng Health Care System’s Progressive Management Practices to Be Included in Tsinghua University Textbooks Once Again

2009-09-06T17:43:00.000-07:00

The Tsinghua University of Science and Technology will once again include two cases regarding the Min-Sheng Health Care System in one of its textbooks: the sale and lease back deal with ING and Min-Sheng’s patient centered U-Care program.

"Introduction to Service Science: 10 Topics" includes dozens of well-known business cases of innovative services, including the transformation of Taiwan's manufacturing industry; Taiwan's semiconductor industry with TSMC's business overview; IBM on how to create a full range of service organizations; and Google’s views on innovation and creativity.

Lesson plans for the main contents of the cases from the Min-Sheng System include the U-Care plan motivation, positioning and strategy, U-Care services and practices to plan the execution of the results of illustrations.

The Min-Sheng U-Care project has been a large part of the post-secondary program for two years now, mainly for the use of information and communications technology and the concept of telemedicine services to achieve innovation. As a result of effective implementation, government subsidies have been directed toward intelligent care division plans. Thus, the project will be part of the revolutionary changes coming soon to Taiwan!

Min-Sheng Signs Agreement with Mainland Hospital

2009-09-06T17:40:00.000-07:00

The Min-Sheng Health Care System signed an MOU with the Henan Province People’s First Hospital of Pingdingshan City of mainland China in order to promote closer cooperation between the two sides.

On July 15, 2009,Min-Sheng Health Care System Chairman Yang Min-Sheng, along with Pingdingshan the president of the People's First Hospital, Jin-Sheng Ma, signed a memorandum of understanding to further promote cross-strait development of medical and health offices. In the future, both sides will share resources, advantages, and long-term cooperation.

Min-Sheng will deploy personnel to Pingdingshan as part of the project preparatory group. The Pingding Shan People’s First Hospital will develop the framework of laws and regulations for the inspection to negotiate the provision of policy information services. In the future, the Min-Sheng System will continue to extend this pattern to the Asia-Pacific regional health care network, with a view to expanding the provision of better services to the entire system.

Chung-Li Min-Sheng Hospital to Open! Residents of South Taoyuan to Benefit!

2009-08-03T18:05:00.000-07:00

The Min-Sheng Health Care System is set to open a new hospital in the Chung-Li Ping Zhen area. This is another important milestone, following the building the Jin-Kuo campus, in the 34 years of the system’s existence.

Ping Zhen area is densely populated and the demand for health care is high. The Min-Sheng System took over Chung-Li Hua Yang Hospital last year. Due to technicalities, the lease wasn’t eligible to be resigned, so CEO Yang decided to relocate the hospital instead. The new hospital is located on Chung Shan E. Rd and it will be completed in August.

CEO Yang indicated that relocating the hospital means a fresh start for everyone, so the hospital will be renamed Chung-Li Min-Sheng Hospital as a means of promising the residents of South Taoyuan the high quality of health care service that goes along with the Min-Sheng brand name. In the beginning, the services offered will only be local due to the limited number of beds. The focus at the Chung-Lin Min-Sheng Hospital will be cardiovascular medicine and orthopedic medicine. The hospital will continue promoting community health care in the same manner that it did while managing Hua Yang Hospital. In the future if more beds are added, the areas of service will also be expanded.

Executive Vice President Zhang stated that at the Jin-Kuo campus, due to national health care reimbursement limitations, some physicians are prevented from practicing medicine in the manner that they know best. With the addition of the Chung-Li Min-Sheng Hospital; however, these doctors will have a new place to practice medicine as they see fit.
The new hospital is scheduled for completion in August and will open in September.

Historic moment! Min-Sheng to Begin JCI Reaccreditation Process

2009-08-03T18:00:00.000-07:00

In 2006, Min-Sheng was the first hospital in Taiwan to receive JCI accreditation, making Taiwan a player in the international healthcare market. Since then, a total of 6 Taiwanese hospitals have been accredited. Currently the National Taiwan University Hospital, Zhang-Bin Shou Chuan Hospital and Shu Li Shuang He Hospital are all preparing to obtain JCI accreditation. Min-Sheng, however, is in the process of obtaining JCI reaccreditation.

Min-Sheng executive vice president, Professor Zhang, stated that upon Min-Sheng receiving its JCI accreditation 3 years ago, JCI has become the national indicator of quality medical care in hospitals. After 3 years of hard work, Min-Sheng is expected to learn the results of its reaccreditation attempt later this week. In addition to providing quality records to the inspection team, Min-Sheng staff will also demonstrate some of its innovative projects, for example, Min-Sheng’s state of the art Kiosk system and its U-Care telemedicine devices.

Chief Quality Officer Connie Ma, a former JCI employee, indicated that JCI requires the hospitals which are getting certification for the first time to offer 4 months worth of records. The second time, however, JCI needs 3 years worth of records, which makes the task more arduous. The items on the accreditation list become more numerous each year as well. Therefore, the hospital must continually improve its quality in order to obtain accreditation the second time around.

The Min-Sheng Health Care System has conducted a 3 year quality management program. Every branch hospital has improved its quality during this period and improved its image during the process. The past few years of hard work have culminated in excellent results. Besides hiring many doctors from National Taiwan University Hospital, the Jin-Kuo campus has achieved national standards of quality.

Furthermore, Min-Sheng has become the only hospital in Taiwan to receive the JCIDSC certification and the ISO9001 sector certification. Executive Vice President Zhang stated that entire process of enhancing Min-Sheng’s medical service quality has been geared toward providing better service to patients.

Min-Sheng Celebrates 34 Years of Affectionate Service

2009-07-27T23:27:00.000-07:00

Taoyuan’s largest regional hospital, Min-Sheng General, held its 34th anniversary celebrations at its flagship Jin-Kuo campus on July 20th, 2009. Several local government officials were invited, including Taoyuan Deputy Mayor Guo Cai-Wen.

Min-Sheng executives, such as Chairman Yang Min-Sheng, Superintendant Zhang Yangquan, Director Kang Zhisen and Taoyuan Deputy Mayor Guo opened the festivities by cutting the cake. Min-Sheng General Hospital is the only hospital in Taiwan with JCIDSC certification. The Department of Cardiovascular medicine was rewarded with the JCIDSC honor.

In addition to the activities, volunteers donating blood were eligible for prizes, such as free ice-cream and gift vouchers. The anniversary celebration activities also included several film viewings for staff and local residents alike. Everyone enjoyed the festivities.

For 34 years, the Min-Sheng Health Care System has upheld the principles of innovation, excellence, and integrity. In recent years, the health care group has added a number of honors, such as becoming the Taiwan’s first JCI hospital and its first JCIDSC AMI hospital. In the future, Min-Sheng will continue to focus on international standards and quality of care.

Executive Vice President Charles Chang Reflects on 13 Years of Dedicated Service

2009-07-27T23:23:00.000-07:00

Min-Sheng VP Charles Chang returned from the US 13 years ago to join the Min-Sheng Health Care System. He worked on branch development, reaping excellent results. He said that he would prefer to be like fire and burn for a short time and then disappear than be like dust sitting on the ground forever.

Min-Sheng’s VP Chang has an impressive background filled with executive experience. During his first month on the job, the hospital faced major obstacles, such as water, food and electricity shortages, and wage cuts. Owing to his wisdom and experienced, he resolved these problems one after another. He also led the hospital to the JCI, ING, and SOP periods. Finally, he spearheaded the system’s green initiative.

VP Chang learned a lot from Yi-Jen Hospital, approaching the job as if he were a soldier. He lived in the hospital for three months, ensuring that he was there when needed, especially in times of crisis. Additionally, VP Chang promotes volunteer work at the hospital and active business community resources, including government agencies, NGOs, and business organizations. He stressed that in addition to the medical profession, that Min-Sheng Group is also actively diversified into non-medical industries in order to create strong social resources and promote the efficient use of system resources.

Through entrepreneurship, growth, and changes, VP Chang states that you can never climb to the sky, but you can always climb over the mountain. VP Chang intends to continue to lead the system’s integration into internationalization, as well as to lead Min-Sheng in its pursuit of excellence, thus creating a more valuable organization.

Quality of Care Reaffirmed through Interdepartmental ISO 9001 Certification

2009-06-28T18:05:00.001-07:00

In accordance with its plans of attaining JCI reaccreditation in July, Min-Sheng recently obtained the ISO 9001 International Certification. The certification affirms that the hospital meets international standards of high quality management systems. The evaluation included a written review, as well as field visits by an SGS assessment team composed of medical experts.
Min-Sheng’s testing center first received ISO 9001: 2000 and ISO 15189 certifications in 2003. This year, the hospital intends to extend the ISO 15189 certification to 120 different centers. All testing center facilities are in accordance with certification standards and a comprehensive management program has already been established. The program has been incorporated into the laboratory, the Medical Imaging Division, and the Pharmacy Department. The program promotes the awareness of quality to ISO standardization and the maintenance of quality care.

Min-Sheng has continually provided user friendly, high quality medical care in recent years through various types of national and international accreditations, including the Regional Teaching Hospital accreditation, JCI accreditation, and JDSC-AMI international certification. These certifications not only integrate domestic and international health care standards, but will also ensure the hospital maintains world class standards of care.

Min-Sheng’s Dr. Zheng: A Paradigm of High Quality Health Care

2009-06-28T18:01:00.000-07:00

According to the Bureau of National Insurance, in Taiwan, the so called “Kingdom of Dialysis,” the first 5 of the country’s largest 20 outpatient clinics are dialysis centers. Min-Sheng’s dialysis center has entered into a strategic alliance with the world’s largest health care provider in order to offer high quality patient care services. In turn, this will foster Min-Sheng’s good reputation and provide international visibility.

The outstanding success of Min-Sheng’s renal dialysis center can be attributed to its director, Dr. Zheng. Dr. Zheng began as a renal physician at Min-Sheng more than twenty years ago, and in that time, he has served as both director of internal medicine and as vice president of Min-Sheng’s flagship Jin-Kuo campus.

Led by cooperation between Dr. Zheng’s kidney center health care team and Asia Pacific companies, the Min-Sheng dialysis center has been supplied with the high quality 4008-S dialysis machine and the biocompatible Polysulphone. Through the strategic alliance, although having already achieved a status of world class health care, the service amount has continued to grow in multiples. Dr. Zheng stated that Min-Sheng’s kidney center strives to construct a platform of market indicators. He also pointed out that Taiwan has a lot of dialysis patients who suffer through daily dialysis treatments. He emphasized that his team provides professional and humane care to each of its patients in order to achieve the best therapeutic result.

In the end, Dr. Zheng stressed that the purpose of medical institutions is not profit, but to change lives. He concluded that the key factors in the success of the kidney center were the full support of senior management and all health care colleagues.

On the verge of accepting an assignment at St. Paul’s Hospital, Dr. Zheng said that he won’t forget to return to the medical aspect of his duties because at the end of the day, he is simply a doctor. He added that doctors need to remind themselves at all times that the duties of a good physician are a dedication to health care, adherence to high quality care, and a sincere concern for the continued health of mankind.

Investing in Human Capital

2009-06-15T20:30:00.000-07:00

Talent is the essence of enterprise. Decision is the key to international competitiveness. In order to enhance the enterprise's core competitiveness, the Min-Sheng Healthcare System not only created a knowledge sharing system, but for the past three years, its associates have achieved an acceptance rate of greater than 90% into many top graduate schools, revealing Min-Sheng’s strong foundation and formidable and competitive talent base.

The primary requirement in the development of competitiveness is the training of personnel. During the past three years, Min-Sheng’s associates have been admitted to such famous graduate schools as National Taiwan University, Chengchi University, Chung Yuan Christian University and Fu Jen Catholic University. Overall, a total of 50 master’s degrees have been obtained, an excellent show of competitiveness.

Min-Sheng has cooperated with Yuan Ze University to establish an EMBA for its employees. Additionally, it is currently working with several local universities to promote industry-university cooperation in order to create a platform for personnel training, enhance employee competitiveness and operations management know-how. Min-Sheng is Taiwan’s first health care system to make an attempt at cultivating an international perspective, innovative strategic thinking, and team management personnel in order to compete more effectively in the international medical arena.

Chairman Yang Min-Sheng stated that the nurturing of talents has become an indicator of competitiveness. He added that sustainable development of the Min-Sheng Healthcare System enables it to “implement an organizational culture, pursue excellence, and grow strong. “

Chairman Yang also stated that as a result of globalization, health care appears to be following the trend of internationalization. Beginning in 2005, Min-Sheng began recruiting talented professionals and working closely with academic institutions to establish a systematic mechanism to obtain personnel and remain competitive in the future global economy.

Min-Sheng Healthcare System and Kai Nan University Sign Agreement

2009-05-31T22:29:00.000-07:00

Health care is one of Taiwan’s star industries. On May 21, 2009, the Min-Sheng Healthcare System and Kainan University gathered together in the Min-Sheng General Hospital conference room to sign an agreement which will enhance education and teaching, as well as the publication of academic research capabilities.

Additionally, the two sides will engage in community service, hospital internships, teaching support and academic research, and medical technology training. Kai Nan and Min-Sheng have also jointly established three departments, including the Seniors Health Department, the Department of Nutrition, and the Seniors Health Promotion Department. Min-Sheng will provide Kai Nan University with lecturers, such as VP Li Wei-Jie, VP Chen Peng-Xuan, Dr. Wang Xian-Guo, Dr. Chen Tai-Qi, Dr. Wei Tian-Shan, Dr. Zhang Jian-Zhi, Dr. Su Min-Zheng, Dr. Wei Ri-Hua, and so on. Through resource sharing and talent exchange, both parties are looking forward to becoming rising stars within the medical industry.

Actuarial Society of Medical Scholars to Hold Long-term Care Seminar

2009-05-10T19:01:00.000-07:00

In response to the needs of an aging society, the Taiwan government has been actively promoting programs such as the Long-term Care System Pilot Program, and the New Century Health Care Plan. A long-term care insurance system for senior citizens has become a topic of hot debate. In line with government policies, the Actuarial Society of Medical Scholars and Experts will hold a seminar on May 21, 2009 to discuss the topics of long-term care insurance and the future of elder care.

The Actuarial Society of the Republic of China relies on the knowledge of interdisciplinary sciences and statistical mathematics to implement the rational use of medical resources. Min-Sheng Health Care System Chairman, Dr. Yang Min-Sheng, has been the chairman of the Actuarial Society for more than four years.

He pointed out that the Actuarial Society will hold its sixth annual meeting in order to discuss topics, such as the association’s future direction, the development planning for this year, new member qualifications, the annual meeting date, and Taiwan’s long-term care industry and insurance plan meeting

Additionally, the May 21st seminar will include topics such as Taiwan’s long-term care insurance and long-term care industry and the utilization of remote care, or U-Care. It is hoped that the meeting will lay the ground work for a long-term academic insurance study that will be completed with three years. The study aims to educate people and lead to the construction of a complete long-term care system which will meet the diverse needs of the elderly community.

Min-Sheng and Japan to Begin Fighting Dementia Together

2009-05-10T18:58:00.000-07:00

Through the Min-Sheng Health Care System and the Taiwan Dementia Association, a Japanese delegation was invited to Taiwan on April 25. The main purpose of the trip was to promote dementia care and the prevention of dementia through the exchange of experiences. It was hoped that the trip to Taiwan would allow both countries to express their deep concerns for patients with dementia and the elderly in order to create a better society.

Dementia Society Secretary General Tang stressed that the dementia care community will be an important issue to face in the future. The society encourages elders to participate in activities such as gymnastics, art, nostalgia and tourism in order to slow the onset of dementia.

The Tokyo Research Institute points out that participating in tourist activities can effectively enhance the activation of brain cells while arousing a sense of community involvement, which may relax mild dementia in the elderly.

$31.5 billion NTD Will Be Spent Caring for Taiwanese Suffering from Dementia
The executive director of the Taiwan Society of Dementia stated that the current number of Taiwanese suffering from dementia is approximately 150,000 people, but within the next ten years, the number will reach 200,000. He believes, therefore, that the construction of social welfare resources and planning for a long-term care system will be necessary in the future.

Low Healthcare Cost Is Taiwan’s Competitive Advantage with regard to International Medical Tourism
According to the Taiwan Tourism Bureau, data show that were the Japanese to come to Taiwan for health checks and PET (brain CT and possible diagnosis of dementia), they would save $80,000 NTD. Moreover, they could also partake in recreation and tourism, thus bolstering both the medical and tourist industries.

In the short term, Min-Sheng and its Japanese partners will reach a consensus on a period of less than one month for a “short stay,” which includes a brain CT scan, prescriptions, and health promotion activities designed to effectively help the Japanese slow the advance of dementia. In the long run, Min-Sheng will integrate the services of its Yide Conservation Center and health park to allow Taiwanese and Japanese seniors to live longer and to enjoy nature and leisure activities.

Min-Sheng Holds JCIDSC International Hospital Accreditation Seminar

2009-05-10T18:55:00.000-07:00

Min-Sheng General Hospital’s JCIDSC Comprehensive Cardiovascular Care and International Hospital Accreditation Seminar was held a few days ago.

Min-Sheng General Hospital, the first and only hospital in Taiwan to complete the JDSC medical certification and new JCI hospital accreditation, offered the seminar to assist Taiwan’s medical community in better understanding the certification and accreditation processes. A number of renowned guests attended the seminars, including the JCI Asia-Pacific Region Chief Representative Dr. Paul Chang, and National Taiwan University Hospital Vice President Chung-Li Wang among others.
During the event, Chi-Sum Kang quoted Bill Gates of Harvard University, saying that “the greatest achievements of humanity come not from new discoveries, but from how we’ve applied the new discoveries.” Mr. Kang went on to add that their cardiovascular model is a flexible application which follows the latest US guidelines for the treatment of myocardial infarction, so that the survival rate of patients with cardiovascular disease continues to increase along with the quality of care.

The seminar received a warm response and Director Kang was invited to a series of lectures regarding JCDSC-AMI. The JCDSC-AMI certification has greatly enhanced the image of Min-Sheng’s Department of Cardiovascular Medicine.

Dr. Lin Zong-Xi to Lead Yi Jen Hospital into New Era

2009-04-06T23:54:00.000-07:00

Era Min-Sheng Health Care System’s Yi Jen Hospital will celebrate its 12th anniversary this year by introducing a new executive: Dr। Lin Zong-Xi। He will serve as both hospital superintendent and chairman, in addition to maintaining his role as VP of the overall sytem। 　

Dr। Lin Zong-Xi has worked for the Min-Sheng Health Care System for 30 years and brings a wealth of experience to his new role। He was previously superintendent of Jin Shan Hospital and the general manager of Min-Sheng medical control। Dr। Lin stated that the MS health Care System is getting stronger every day with its emphasis on patient centered medicine। He added that his goal is to provide even better medical serviceस्य्स्तेम।Chairman Yang Min-Sheng said that under the guidance of Lin, Yi Jen Hospital will develop a new atmosphere। He also said that the hospital already has a strong foundation, but the addition of Dr. Lin will make the group even stronger and enable it to better serve the greater Yang Mei area.

High cost of healthcare at home brings American to Taiwan for bilateral knee surgery

2009-03-24T01:12:00.000-07:00

Driven by the high cost of healthcare in the U.S, a patient recently travelled to Taiwan’s Min-Sheng Hospital for total knee replacement surgery, and left enthusiastic about the care and service he received.

Ken, who owns and operates a small landscaping business in Clearwater Florida, had been suffering from bad knees for nearly nine years. When the pain became such that it impaired his ability to work and earn a living, he couldn’t turn away from the only option left to him: undergo surgery and replace his ailing knees with artificial ones.

Though common and readily available in America, knee replacement surgery is also costly. In Ken’s case, a bilateral knee replacement, the cost can easily amount to over $ 70.000 (NT +/- 2.500.000). Unfortunately, like almost 50 million Americans, Ken doesn’t have medical insurance, and would be left to pay the bill by himself. As such, he belongs to that rapidly expanding category of Americans who are “too rich” to qualify for Medicare or Medicaid, but whose incomes aren’t sufficient to pay for expensive private medical insurance.

Desperately needing a treatment that he couldn’t afford, Ken decided to search for a solution outside of the United States. Having heard of Medical Travel, where people travel abroad in search of treatments that they can’t find or pay for at home, Ken used the Internet to find viable options for his case. He was soon a little overwhelmed by the number of hospitals and medical travel facilitators that offer their services on-line. Therefore, he decided to focus only on hospitals meeting international safety and quality standards, namely those that are JCI accredited.

Ken sent queries to hospitals in nearly half a dozen countries ( Costa Rica, Columbia, Spain, Singapore) including Min-Sheng Hospital in Taoyuan, Taiwan. The International Healthcare department (IHC) at Min-Sheng, that was specifically created to deal with cases like these, handled his request from start to finish.

Ken was extremely impressed by the professionalism demonstrated by the staff at Min-Sheng, and grateful for the time spent on his case. So when the time came to decide on a destination for his knee replacements, he didn’t hesitate, and chose Min-Sheng Hospital. The date for the surgery was set, and his trip to Taiwan organized.

On February 1st, Ken was met at Taoyuan International Airport by a Min-Sheng IHC staff and taken to a hotel close to the hospital. Mr. H. had requested to do some sight-seeing before his admission at the hospital, so he took part in a tour of Northern Taiwan also organized for him by the IHC. A few days later, Ken. H was admitted to the hospital and completed a series of tests before his surgery.

Although people in Taiwan are usually discharged within a week of knee replacement surgery, Ken had been told that for safety reasons, he had to wait at least three weeks before flying, and since he came to Taiwan alone, he had agreed to stay under nursing care at the hospital until his departure. His comfortable private room became his temporary new “home” and the staff at Min-Sheng his “family”. As can be expected, his stay wasn’t always a bed of roses, and his mood fluctuated, but overall Ken is extremely satisfied with the care he received in Taiwan and would recommend Min-Sheng Hospital to anyone in his situation.

Language wasn’t really a problem thanks to the effort put in by the nurses, and the multi-lingual staff at the IHC. The main problem was probably boredom. Watching TV, talking to the staff, physical therapy, reading and sitting in the hospital’s garden help to kill the time, but being confined to a hospital, with limited mobility and especially without the company of loved ones is tough on everyone, and particularly on someone who travelled half way around the world for treatment.

“Coming to Taiwan’s Min-Sheng Hospital was a no-brainer”, says Ken, “I got first class care and service for a fraction of the price I would have paid in the U.S”.
Ken not only left Taiwan with new knees and the promise of a better future, he also made a lot of new friends here.

Min-Sheng and RIEI Company of Japan Sign MOU

2009-03-23T19:31:00.001-07:00

On January 13, 2009, Min-Sheng Health Care System’s CEO Dr. Fred Yang and a co-founder of Japan’s RIEI Company, Mr. Kabasawa, jointly signed an MOU for the exchange of medical and elderly care. The agreement will also encourage elderly Japanese to visit Taiwan for recreational purposes, as well as medical travel.

RIEI Company was established in 1980 and for nearly 30 years has been engaged with the Ministry of Health and Welfare, long term recreational travel and the therapy services business। In Japan, RIEI already has 332 resident management service departments and 16 elder care centers.

The first step for the Min-Sheng Health Care System will be integrating medicine with marketing tourism. In the future, the model will continue to be extended to the Asia-Pacific region to build health care networks, with an eye on more expansion of system development, international tourism and the upgrade of eldercare facilities.

Related News Clips:
1. http://www.riei.co.jp/company/press.html
2. RIEI Co., Ltd. website.：http://www.riei.co.jp/eng/outline/e_index.html

Min-Sheng Health Care System Continues China Expansion

2009-03-08T19:17:00.000-07:00

Min-Sheng Health Care System’s mainland China plans continue to progress after the recent integration of Hunan’s Wang Wang Hospital and Hainan’s Second People’s Hospital। Also, Guangdong Province’s Dongguan Guanghua Hospital has recently signed an agreement to build a medical service center for Taiwanese businessmen living in the area, establishing a stronghold in China’s Pearl River Delta for Min-Sheng.

Dongguang Guanghua Hospital is located in Dongguang City, which has a high number of Taiwanese businesspeople living there। It is a 500 bed hospital that was established through a joint venture by locals and Taiwanese business people. It is also the teaching hospital of the Tong Ji School of Medicine. Min-Sheng plans to send doctors from Taiwan to Guanghua Hospital on a monthly basis in order to provide care for the Taiwanese residing in Dongguan.

Min-Sheng’s executive vice president, Professor Zhang Yangquan, pointed out that the cooperation between China and Taiwan’s resident physicians to support the mainland’s first privately run hospital will bring closer cooperation between the two sides. He added that in the future, the relationship will develop a cross-strait model for private hospital cooperation and Min-Sheng will lead Taiwan in exporting its hospital management system to the mainland.

Min-Sheng Entering into a New Era of Leadership

2009-03-08T19:13:00.000-07:00

Min-Sheng is entering into a new era of operations management। Professor Zhang Yang-Quan will officially become the system’s executive vice president, as well as the superintendent of Min-Sheng General Hospital. Current CEO Dr. Fred Yang stated that he had accomplished everything that he set out to do as superintendent and that it was now time for him to set his sights on other goals, allowing for Professor Zhang to step in as the new superintendent.

Professor Zhang is an internationally renowned neurological medical authority, former professor at National Taiwan University School of Medicine and former director of the National Taiwan University Hospital Department of Neurology। Additionally, he assisted Min-Sheng Hospital three years ago in obtaining Taiwan’s first JCI accreditation.

Professor Zhang stated that he intends to vertically and horizontally develop Ming-Sheng Health Care System’s five branch hospitals and three care centers। In addition to implementing sound, sustainable business development, Zhang stated that the future direction of the organization will move toward the integration of the branch hospitals with every kind of professional system network, including personnel and resource sharing in order to enhance the quality of medical care.

Dr. Yang will now become the deputy general manager of the Asia Pacific Health Company where he will focus his efforts on setting up the firm’s hospital chain management platform.
Chairman Yang Min-Sheng stated that the future will bring the institutionalization of the professional management team into the operation. He also added that he was looking forward not only to Min-Sheng’s quality of medical care becoming the benchmark in Taiwan’s medical community, but also seeing its operations management become a model for the industry as well!

Min-Sheng Health Care System's Huayang Hospital Has Completed New System Hospital Accreditation

2009-02-16T17:20:00.000-08:00

On August 1st, 2008 Min-Sheng Health Care System took over Huayang General Hospital in Chungli, Taiwan. Under the leadership of Superintendent Dr. Chen Ching-Yuan, Huayang Hospital integrated into the Min-Sheng system within two months. At the same time, he assured the hospital's smooth acceptance of the new system and the passage of hospital accreditation. Dr. Chen stated that Huayang Hospital's being ready to complete the task in a very short period was, apart from the efforts of his associates, proof of the thoroughness and success of Min-Sheng Health Care System's hospital management platform. He added that the hospital will provide the people with high quality health care and service, and promote high standards of care in south Taoyuan. With the integration of Huayang Hospital into the Min-Sheng system, the medical team will come to include heart medicine physician Dr. Qiu Ding-Yu, Bariatric surgeon Dr. Li Wei-Jie, chest medicine physician Dr. Ye Bu-Sheng, heart medicine specialist Dr. Sun, and ophthalmologist Dr. Lai Cheng-Ting. What's more, members of the Huayang orthopedic team have been invited to join the Southern Taoyuan Orthopedic Center, which will greatly benefit local orthopedic patients. Vice President Liu Qi-Tian, who is responsible for the south Taoyuan market, said that constant participation and evaluation drive Min-Sheng's pursuit of high quality health care. He added that the system continues to lead the way in "patient centered" service by providing high quality humanized care.

Min-Sheng CEO Yang Speaks at D.C. Consumer Health Conference

2009-02-16T17:16:00.000-08:00

Missioncare Health Care System CEO Fred Yang was recently invited to speak at the Consumer Health World Forum in Washington, D।C. His speech was entitled "The internationalization of Innovation Driven Health Care".

Forum attendees included major U.S. insurance companies, large employers and international medical industry professionals. The importance of the seminar was highlighted by the fact that two U.S. senators and the president of the American Medical Association also spoke at the event.
CEO Yang stated that the purpose of the trip wasn't so much to introduce Min-Sheng's health care system to the U।S., but to better introduce Taiwan's medical industry. He pointed out that Taiwan's electronics and information technology products are world famous, of course owing to the fact there are talented professionals working in both of those industries, but, he added, the most talented people in Taiwan attend medical school. He concluded that in Taiwan, the most talented work in patient services!

CEO Yang shared with the audience the many advantages that led to the creation of the Taiwanese international service miracle: geographical advantage, language advantages, a sophisticated IT environment, and human resources advantages। Finally, he stressed the importance of quality talent in Taiwan.

Following the seminar, CEO Yang was invited to deliver another speech to the National Taiwan University alumni in North America. CEO Yang pointed out that Min-Sheng's internationalization efforts have gradually come to fruition. Additionally, he added that Taiwan's medical industry can be competitive in the international arena and that Min-Sheng will continue to play the role of international medical pioneer in the future.

Min-Sheng Opens Long-Term Care Center in Luchu Township

2009-02-16T17:04:00.000-08:00

The Min-Sheng Health Care System has opened the Luchu Township Long-Term Care Center। The center, which officially began operations on Jan। 19, will greatly benefit the residents of the Luchu एरिया।।Invited to the opening ceremony were Min-Sheng's ChairmanYang Min-Sheng, system CEO Dr. Fred Yang, and Luchu Mayor Yu Ju-Lan among others.

The center was planned by a local government agency and bids were accepted by open tender. The project was under the commission of Yi-De Elder Care Center's operational management. The long-term care center covers an area of approximately 10,000 square feet. Additionally, the property looks out upon outdoor bridges, a fountain and an outdoor stage. What's more, the designers were able to design it in such a way that the compound is very safe, yet aesthetically appealing.

Care will be provided for high-quality and innovative services, including U-care RFID remote monitoring services, 24 hour monitoring at the call center, daily measurements of body temperature and pulse, ultimately providing residents with more humane services.

The center will open with a total of 200 beds, well equipped hardware, and excellent security. In addition, the Luchu township offices will actively combine community resources to promote social welfare services, such as community room service planning, which will allow for locals to participate in community activities.

CEO Fred Yang indicated that meeting the demand for elderly care services has become increasingly important. He added that the stability of customers and the pursuit of sustainable development and the concept of quality care for the elderly will enable seniors to enjoy a dignified and healthy life well into their golden years.

Min-Sheng's Cardiovascular Center First to Receive Coveted JCIDSC-AMI

2009-02-16T17:03:00.000-08:00

Min-Sheng has been awarded Joint Commission International Disease Specific Certification for Acute Myocardial Infarction. Min-Sheng passed the rigorous two day evaluation becoming the first hospital in Taiwan to receive disease specific accreditation.

In recent years, Min-Sheng has adopted an international perspective and an innovative approach, proactively seeking various kinds of accreditation as part of its overall strategy to enhance its medical service and quality. Now the residents of Taoyuan county can take advantage of a total solution under one roof.

The evaluation focused on 24 quality indicators, clinical care and the quality of medical care. It also included a cardiovascular briefing presentation, review of written information, and an on-site inspection of all units and patient visits through an international external audit system.

Director of the Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Dr. Kang Zhi-Sun, stated that his team has extremely high standards and that they use every treatment at their disposal, especially when facing acute myocardial infarction. He further added that all staff members and his team work hard together to enhance the quality of cardiovascular medicine. Finally, he reminded everyone that the cardiovascular medical team is on standby 24 hours a day, so patients arriving at the emergency room can receive diagnosis quickly, providing the patient with the best chance of being rescued from myocardial necrosis.

JCDSC – AMI is a disease-specific international certification for the diagnosis and treatment of acute myocardial infarction that requires world-class medical institutions to demonstrate superior service quality, and to provide disease-specific care commitment.

Min-Sheng and Long-Zhou Orthopedic Chain to Join Forces

2009-02-16T16:57:00.000-08:00

Through the calls of Professor Po-Quang Chen, the Missioncare Health Care System and Long-Zhou Orthopedic Chain have joined forces. Professor Chen invited Long- Zhou's orthopedic team to work in the Chung-Li Hua Yang Hospital, achieving a breakthrough in local orthopedic integration.

The Min-Sheng Asia Pacific Spine Center has been in existence for a little more than a year. Under the leadership of VP Po-Quang Chen, an outstanding professional medical team that includes doctors, nurses and rehabilitation staff members has been assembled. Furthermore, his center has spared no expense in the acquisition of state of the art medical equipment. Through the integration of the Asia Pacific Spine Center and Long-Zhou Orthopedic, residents of South Taoyuan County will now enjoy excellent and specialized care.

Dr. Chang-Hua Chen, superintendent of Taoyuan County's well known orthopedic chain Long Zhou, is presently executive director of the Taoyuan County Physician's Association. According to Dr. Chen, many professional orthopedic doctors have established orthopedic chains all over Taoyuan City and County and because they are strong doctors, they've established a good reputation in Taoyuan. Professor Po-Quang Chen believes that the alliance between Min-sheng and Long-Zhou Orthopedic, along with Min-Sheng's strong ties to National Taiwan University Hospital, will result in the creation of Taiwan's largest orthopedic medical team.

Combination of Two Medical Groups a Win-Win Situation

2009-01-01T22:16:00.001-08:00

Taiwan's number one medical biotechnology company, Mei Wu Hua, Inc. has officially invested in Sheng Hong. In 1976, Mei Wu Hua sold hair products. Then, it began to diversify into the pharmaceuticals field through establishing the pharmacy chain, Boden. Then, by 1998 Mei Wu Hua had moved toward new drug development by establishing White Biotechnology, Inc. Currently both companies are sold over the counter.

Two major factors led to Mei Wu Hau's decision to invest in Sheng Hong: 1. The people 2. Mei Wu Hua's investment philosophy. Mei Wu Hua's CEO, Mr. Lai Yu Ru, has been good friends with Min-Sheng's Chairman for many years. Mei Wu Hua's Chairman has always cared about the operations and development of Min-Sheng, and he is very impressed with the new direction of the health care system under the leadership of its current CEO, Dr. Fred Yang.

Mei Wu Hua's CEO believes that Sheng Hong's strengths are a strong professional medical background and vast medical resources, and he believes Mei Wu Hua's strengths are its pharmaceutical research capabilities and a wealth of pharmaceutical marketing experience. With both sides having their own core capabilities, cooperation makes sense. CEO Lai stated that Mei Wu Hua has already launched two successful IPOs, and he wishes that they could assist in making Sheng Hong's IPO as smooth as possible. Finally, CEO Lai said, "Today's investment is just one small step, yet it will be one large step for future development.

Min-Sheng's ECMO Team Saves Two More Lives

2009-01-01T22:14:00.000-08:00

A 36 year old female suddenly came under shock at the end of her liposuction surgery. She was sent to Min-Sheng's emergency room. After emergency CPR, the patient was sent straight to the operating room where open heart surgery was performed and the ECMO team was utilized. The patient's life was saved and after thirteen days, she was discharged from the hospital.

Later, a 39 year old male police officer was running when he fell to the ground and went into cardiac arrest। After arriving at Min-Sheng, the patient was rushed to the operating room where the ECMO machine was used and open heart surgery was performed. From there, the patient was transferred to Tai-Da University Hospital. Once again, the patient's life was saved and after only ten days, he was discharged.

Under the leadership of Chairman Yang Min-Sheng and Superintendent Yang Hong -Ren, the Cardiovascular Department has not only achieved excellence, but it has also has received large investments in medical systems such as ECMO। Furthermore, because of the leadership with the Cardiology Center and a strong team of cardiologists and cardiac surgeons, many lives have already been saved.

Use of the ECMO system is already quite common nowadays at Min-Sheng. Through the hard work of director Li Shao-Rong and his team, the residents of the Taoyuan area can receive comprehensive medical care and have a life guardian.

Taiwan's First Children's Health Assessment Organization Launched

2008-12-22T22:09:00.001-08:00

Taiwanese culture places great emphasis on education। As in most Asian countries in general, Taiwanese attach great importance to the future success of their children and have very high expectations of them। However, there is a general lack of information with regard to raising healthy children. In fact, parents often times don't get concerned about the health of their children until there is an emergency. There is a clear correlation between regular health maintenance and the effectiveness of one's study habits. Unfortunately, most parents are unaware of this phenomenon. As a result, children are constantly at the doctor's office because of fevers and colds. This kind of lifestyle leads to chronic diseases that could have been avoided with preventative management. Most parents raise their children in a manner that allows them to attain many different talents, yet parents forget that child development levels, the ability of children to concentrate, and mental illnesses are the most important factors affecting study results. In short, parents must begin maintaining the health of their children at an early age. Only then will children be able to have healthy and high quality lives.

In November 2008, the nation's first children's health management organization- Child Health Assessment Center (www.bestsmartkids.com) was established. Taiwan's senior pediatricians and the leader of Min-Sheng's Women and Children's Center, Dr. Zhou Hong-Yi, gathered together along with pediatricians, dentists, dieticians, psychologists and nurses from Tai-Da, Chang-Gung, Wan-Fang, Min-Sheng, and Tai-An hospitals. The purpose of the organization is to design a health assessment check-up. The group of experts will try and understand all of the factors that affect children's health, development, nutrition, sleep, etc. Individual children and families will be given training about restoring children's health.

The center officially opened in November. CHAT prides itself on being able to provide professional care for every growing child and helping with any problem, big or small.

Min-Sheng Vice President Liu Awarded By Taiwan Medical Association

2008-12-22T21:55:00.000-08:00

On November 18, 2008, Superintendant Liu Qi-Tian of Yi-Ren Hospital located in Yang-Mei received the Role Model Award from Taiwan's National Medical Association। Superintendent Liu's career has spanned over 40 years of dedicated service. Some of his accomplishments include helping to contain the SARS outbreak and a lifetime of service to the disadvantaged. Regarding the award, Dr. Liu modestly said that he wasn't worthy of it.

The 66 year old Dr। Liu is a graduate of National Taiwan University School of Medicine and is currently a vice president of the Min-Sheng Health Care System. Additionally, he is the superintendent of Yi-Ren Hospital and he specializes in general surgery.

Dr। Liu was recommended for the award by the Taoyuan County Medical Association, in particular for his efforts during the SARS epidemic. Under his direction, two suspected SARS cases were detected in the Yang-Mei camp, with the last confirmed case having been identified as reducing the way people are infected. In addition, Dr. Liu has served as the chairman of a number of public institutions.

Dr। Liu gave full credit for the award to the efforts of his medical team. Dr. Liu is most proud of the fact that he has performed 5000 cases of hernia surgery in remote areas on patients aged 5 to 90 years old.

Recently, Dr. Liu is committed to reducing instances of child mortality for children under the age of five. Dr. Liu stressed that every day around the world 30,000 children die from an accident or an illness.

Min-Sheng Publishes Its First Textbook of Management Accounting and Shares Its Best Practice Experience

2008-12-02T16:38:00.001-08:00

Min-Sheng C.E.O. Dr. Fred Yang recently had his book published-"Management Accounting Practice- How to Create a Well Run Hospital" It provides policy makers and industry managers with the essence of accounting practices and to guides them to create operating achievements. Dr. Yang has many years experience leading the accounting department. Additionally, he has spent many years in the hospital gaining practical knowledge and experience. His book provides an easy to use step by step knowledge of hospital management accounting systems. The book is divided into a total of twelve chapters. Some of the topics include hospital costs, break even analysis, management accounting and decision analysis, investment decision making capacity, performance assessment and management, etc. The book is well structured and thorough, yet it also explains things in layman's terms so that anyone could use it. For better results, National Taiwan University's accounting department director and graduate school director, Professor Li Xuxing, wrote the preface for the book. They would also like to dedicate this book to Mr. Zhang Xinghan, a former vice president, for his contributions to the accounting system.

Min-Sheng Bowl Teenager Baseball Competition Coming This Month

2008-12-02T01:13:00.000-08:00

We need more of Chien-Ming Wang!To support and develop county baseball activities and to foster local talent, Min-Sheng's chairman, Dr। Min-Sheng Yang, officially announced the sponsorship of Taoyuan County's little league baseball tournament, the Min-Sheng Cup, for the next five years।The Min-Sheng Health Care System is the most complete health care network in the Taoyuan area। Chairman Yang hopes that by investing in the local little league, Taoyuan county little leaguers will have a comprehensive training environment. Furthermore, by working with the government and the school system, a new milestone will be created. In addition, Min-Sheng will provide Taoyuan county's baseball team with professional medical services and top rate medical equipment.Chairman Yang said that he would like to promote athletics for all people and that he thinks baseball can give the youth a reason to exercise more. County Magistrate Li-Lun Chu said that Min-Sheng has been actively involved in public welfare and has spared no effort in hopes that its continued investment will reap the rewards of better health for the community at large. She also believes that the investment will allow county baseball interests to reach an even higher level. Finally, through holding large scale domestic and foreign baseball tournaments, the county's international image will be strengthened. The Min-Sheng Cup youth baseball games will be held from Nov. 7th through Nov. 9th at the Taoyuan oil refinery baseball field. To encourage employees to attend the event, Min-Sheng will hold a family baseball game on Nov. 9th to conclude the tournament.

Advisor for the Saudi Ministry of Health Visits Min-Sheng

2008-11-06T16:38:00.000-08:00

An advisor for the Saudi Arabia Ministry of Health, Dr. Tatal Hussein Bayeri, recently visited Min-Sheng in order to gain an understanding of the hospital's operations as they pertain to international health care and the hospital's clinical information systems. Dr. Bayeri was accompanied by Mr. Dai, a case manager for the Information Industry Association, and Mr. Kao of Yang Ming Information Co. Min-Sheng's Professor Dr. Wei-Jie Lee, the hospital's executive VP, hosted the three visitors. After the visit, Dr. Bayeri was very impressed with the quality of service, the state of the art equipment and facilities, and the sanitary environment. He also expressed his desire to cooperate with Min-Sheng in the future.

Min-Sheng General Hospital Signs Agreement with Holiday Inn Express Hotel

2008-10-27T18:43:00.000-07:00

Min-Sheng Hospital has recently signed an agreement with the nearby Holiday Inn Express Hotel। The Holiday Inn Express Hotel is conveniently located in the center of Taoyuan city. It has 138 comfortable rooms and provides free internet in each of its rooms and a delicious complimentary breakfast. The hotel also has top international management and is located close to a shopping center and convenient public transportation.

The Min-Sheng Health Care System is only one of a few Taiwanese hospitals with international standards. The Jin-Kuo campus was built in 2001 and contains 600 beds. It is the most well known large scale private hospital in the Taoyuan area. Chairman Yang stated that Min-Sheng made its first step toward medical tourism by building the Jin-Kuo campus and outfitting the hospital with state of the art medical equipment.

Min-Sheng and the Holiday Inn Express Hotel both agreed to develop medical tourism services, to provide medical services and information at more favorable prices, to aid customers in reaching the hospital for treatment, and to mutually cooperate in developing बिज़नस.

Professor Tingfang Liu Appointed Senior Consultant at Min-Sheng's Hainan Operation

2008-10-27T18:31:00.000-07:00

To strengthen the Min-Sheng Health Care System and to enhance communication and cooperation with the Hainan health care system, a hospital management expert, Professor Tingfang Liu, has been appointed as a senior consultant at Min-Sheng। He will also assist in the development and promotion of Min-Sheng in China।

Professor Liu served as the president of the Hospital Association in the Hainan province। He was given a very warm reception by Min-Sheng's CEO, Dr। Fred Yang, and other colleagues. During the reception, Professor Liu stated that he hoped that through Dr. Yang's wealth of experience, he could help improve the quality of care and help bring about scientific and standardized management practices to mainland Chinese hospitals and health care.

During Professor Liu's speech, he touched on mainland China's accreditation system and other challenges। He also pointed out that the alliance of Min-Sheng and the Changjiang Second People's Hospital could be a turning point। Besides helping Taiwan's Min-Sheng Hospital promote mainland China's medical management and services, the alliance would also enable development of the health sanitation industry through enhanced quality promotion। Moreover, it would not only benefit senior level management, but also the development of the entire mainland Chinese medical industry.

Min-Sheng Begins New Alliance with BCBSC and Companion Global Healthcare

2008-10-13T18:05:00.000-07:00

American insurance companies are increasingly looking to medical tourism as a means of reducing costs, especially in the face of recent economic malaise। America's largest health insurance organization, the Blue Cross Blue Shield South Carolina, and its subsidiary, Companion Global Healthcare, were recently in Taoyuan to sign a contract with Min-Sheng General Hospital that is expected to bring many Americans to Taiwan for medical services.
Unlike Taiwan, the United States doesn't have universal health care coverage. There are 39 independent health insurance companies nation-wide. The Blue Cross Blue Shield South Carolina is one of the largest health insurance organizations in the U.S. with one-third of the population as its members and 90% of the hospitals belonging to its network.
MissionCare's CEO, Dr। Fred Yang, stated that Min-Sheng has already signed contracts with seven different U.S. health insurance companies in 2008 and expects to sign with two more before year's end. He also believes that these insurance companies were willing to cooperate with Min-Sheng because the hospital was the first in Taiwan to receive Joint Commission International accreditation. Dr. Yang did admit, however, that at present patient volume from the U.S. is minimal. Nevertheless, he is confident that the new alliance with BCBSC could bring a flood of patients in the coming year.
MissionCare's Chief Quality Officer Connie Ma said that BCBSC established Companion Global Healthcare last year in order to provide its clients with a new product. She went on to say that Companion Global Healthcare arranges for patients to travel overseas, provides round trip tickets, and even provides $100 petty cash to every patient.
Ms। Ma also stated that medical costs have surged in the U.S. this year while at the same time medical resources are lacking and the wait time of patients is getting longer and longer, which has prompted health insurance companies to begin sending patients overseas for costly medical procedures.
Companion Global Healthcare has currently signed contracts with hospitals in 11 different nations. The hospitals in Asia are located in Thailand, Singapore and India. Min-Sheng has become the first hospital in Taiwan to be included in its network.
The secretary general of Taiwan Nongovernmental Hospital & Clinic Association, Ming-Yan Wu, pointed out that every American state places several restrictions on insurance companies with regard to overseas medical treatment। But, with the spread of the financial turmoil, local insurance companies hope that many of the restrictions will be lifted. Mr. Wu believes that market for American medical tourists will mature by 2010.
CEO Dr. Fred Yang told reporters that the Min-Sheng Health Care Group began the internationalization process six years ago and that within the year they will have signed contracts with nine different insurance companies. He added that shares of MissionCare's pharmaceutical company, Sheng-Hong, will be sold over the counter next year bringing them one step closer to becoming the largest health care group in the greater China area.
Min-Sheng Hospital was founded by Dr। Min-Sheng Yang in 1975. After his son, current CEO Dr. Fred Yang, joined the organization, it became more and more industrialized and developed. By 1997, the Min-Sheng Healthcare Group had grown to 11 hospitals and clinics including the original hospital.
CEO Yang stated that Min-Sheng General Hospital made three important moves in 1997. First, it signed the buy back lease deal with ING. Second, it obtained Joint Commission International Accreditation and signed an agreement with medical travel facilitator GlobalChoice. Third, they signed an agreement with UnitedHealth International.
Finally, CEO Yang stressed the need to attract the international community to come to Taiwan for medical treatment। Min-Sheng General specializes in cardiovascular, orthopedic, and minimally invasive surgeries and although none of these is an emergency procedure, Europeans and Americans will find that the cost of these procedures in Taiwan is typically 30% of the cost in Western countries

MissionCare's Chairman Yang Wins Human Resource Development Innovation Award

2008-10-12T17:45:00.001-07:00

Min-Sheng Yang, chairman of the MissionCare Health Care System, was awarded the "2008 Human Resource Development Innovation Award" by the Executive Yuan Council of Labor Affairs।
The "HRD Innovation Award" is the first national level award in the field of human innovation, but it is also the industry's highest honor। In order to participate in the program, businesses need to establish a complete system of human capital development। Chairman Yang believes that nurturing talented employees from low level staff to executives will foster human capital innovation and cultivate high quality talent and sustainable growth।

"Human Resource Innovation" is the development of sustainable industry and it cannot be replaced। This award has become the model for the industry। It includes, for example, the establishment of performance evaluation and an employee incentive system to encourage innovation and participation in the quality control circle. Additionally, it includes a system that promotes learning passport and the establishment of the Min-Sheng College EMBA program. Finally, it will promote education at National Taiwan University to build Taiwan's first medical organization in charge of elite education.

As part of his project to cultivate talent, Chairman Yang hopes to build a staff education center – The Min-Sheng Da-Xi Health Academy। In addition to providing professional staff training and career planning, the Academy's location inside of the Da-Xi Healh Park will afford busy students a place to relax।

Chairman Yang also pointed out that human resource innovation and development is a trend of the 21st century knowledge based economy that will enhance international competitiveness and continue to uphold the achievement of sustainable human development, sustainable human innovation, and investment in human capital।

Terry White, President of Bridgehealth International, visits Min-Sheng Hospital.

2008-09-29T19:57:00.000-07:00

September 23rd, Mr। Terry White the President of Bridgehealth International visited Min-Sheng Hospital.

Bridgehealth International is a major facilitator of medical travel in the USA, which signed a cooperation agreement with Missioncare in May of 2008।

During his visit Mr। White met with members of the board to whom he laid out his vision for the development of international medical care, and was later given an extensive tour of our hospital.

Mr. White who has visited numerous hospitals around the world, and was himself superintendent of a hospital group in the USA, was impressed by our facilities and the professionalism of our staff. He expressed his enthusiasm at the opportunities the cooperation between Missioncare and Bridgehealth will create in the future.

Alliance Signing Ceremony between Fu-Jen Catholic University and Min-Sheng Healthcare System

2008-09-29T18:31:00.000-07:00

For the promotion of medical practice, academic cooperation, and the research and integration of health care, the Fu-Jen Catholic University School of Medicine and the Min-Sheng Health Care System will hold a contract signing ceremony on September 25, 2008 in Fu-Jen University's third floor conference room. The two parties hope to achieve mutual support and establish a sound organization of school-hospital cooperation.

Fu-Jen Catholic University's School of Medicine is the only school of medicine in Taiwan which has comprehensively reformed its teaching method and utilized "problem oriented" case study teaching in small classes referred to as Problem Based Learning or PBL. The two sides hope the students will come to understand the future of clinical technology while enjoying a richer and more diversified learning environment through clinical teaching, practice and research. Most of all, both sides expect Fu-Jen Catholic University Medical School graduates to become the future leaders and pioneers of Taiwan's medical community.

Yi-De Long-Term Care Center Residents Show No Fear of Wind and Rain

2008-09-29T18:04:00.000-07:00

An uninvited guest, Typhoon Sinlaku, was unable to dampen the mood at Yi-De Long-Term Care Center's Mid-Autumn Festival party। The September 13th party for the elderly went on as scheduled; however, three of the originally planned events were cancelled due to the rain। Nevertheless, the indoor percussion show still went on।

The central hall was lit up by the bright colors of a two-storey high balloon, which filled the hall with joy and laughter and took everyone's focus away from the wind and rain outside. The Yi-De Long-Term Care Center holds a variety of events every year. All activities are done with the center's senior residents in mind, and this year the center's staff worked extra hard to ensure that the event was memorable and successful despite the poor weather conditions.

Wisdom Taiwan Starts U-City Min-Sheng U-Application Exhibition

2008-09-21T20:31:00.000-07:00

The Taoyuan County Government hosted the "2008 Taiwan Digital City International Symposium" last month at the Taoyuan City Women's Center. Vice President Mr. Vincent Siew visited the scene with members of the Executive Yuan and other high ranking officials and academics.

Min-Sheng Hospital's U-Care Plan and Health Care Vision

The Heart and Soul of the Construction of Wisdom Taiwan's Healthy Life Environment

Min-Sheng CEO Dr. Fred Yang stated: "Min-Sheng's vision, in addition to serving the greater Taoyuan area, is to be a world-class high quality hospital in the global market, and to create Asia's leading health care brand. Through alliances with different industries, and Wisdom Taiwan's government policy development, we would like to create an excellent reputation for Taiwan in the international medical community, and to promote international health care and the advancement of the U-Care Aviation City plan. And finally, we would like to encourage staff members of MissionCare, Inc. and the residents of Taoyuan city to work together for the internationalization of health care and medicine. "In the future, Taoyuan Aviation Science and Technology City's application of a health care plan through Min-Sheng Health Care System's U-Care Case Office Director Dr. Xu and Information Office Director Dr. Wang's strategy will exhibit Min-Sheng Hospital's promotion of U-Care's new phase and results, including home health care management and the development of wireless health care management. The two main exhibits are 1. The Seniors Flagship U-Care Plan. 2. The U-Environment Medical Services Application."
Min-Sheng Home Health Care Device Healthy Living Assistance

U-Care Office Director Dr. Xu stated that in order to display product research and development, the "Home Heath Care Device" utilizes a MiTAC computer, Yi-Long Electronics, Gateway Technologies, Health and Life Co., Ltd, and the Yuan Ze University Research and Development Center team. Min-Sheng Health Care System's emphasis on medical resources and team-based health care; through the integration of information technology and physical measurement technology; the establishment of science and technology; and electronics, will create an "exclusive customized family physician." A sort of medical information system service platform providing de-institutionalized health care services so that seniors living at home can still receive high quality care and services.
The home health care devices are multi-lingual and voice guided so seniors can more easily measure their own physiological conditions. Furthermore, data transmitted wirelessly via the home gateway will allow doctors to carry out real-time monitoring and if need be, immediately notify patients of abnormal physiological measurements.

Min-Sheng Actively Promotes E-Medical Environment through Self Service Kiosks

Min-Sheng provides patient-centric e-quality medical services and as an industry leader, it was the first hospital in Taiwan to introduce self-service Kiosks. Through Mission Hi- Kiosk, Min-Sheng continues to promote medical web service quality, and advance convenience and transparency, thus providing patients with a new medical services model.

Medical Team at Min-Sheng Able to Cure Patient When No One Else Could

2008-09-21T20:28:00.000-07:00

A 38 year old female suffering from abdominal pain, abdominal distention, and constipation, had sought treatment for ten years in numerous hospitals and clinics. After repeated examinations and ineffective treatments, most doctors concluded that the patient suffered from a nervous disorder, or hypochondria. The patient was eventually prescribed morphine to deal with the pain. Over time, the patient needed to use higher and higher dosages until she was addicted. Even though the patient tried to resolve the problem, she received a total of five laparotomies in ten years, which only caused her morphine intake to increase without improving her symptoms. During that decade, she needed to use large doses of laxatives and she constantly received enemas. Nevertheless, she was only able to defecate every four to five days. Even when the patient complained of chronic constipation most doctors merely considered it a side effect of morphine addiction and she was not given a more detailed examination until she came to our hospital. Fortunately, in our hospital we ran several tests that other hospitals didn't and we soon discovered that the patient needed colon surgery. After the operation, the patient resumed normal eating, and regained smooth bowel function. Furthermore, abdominal pain and distention ceased, and the patient was able to kick her morphine habit. According to her testimony, she felt as if she had been "reborn!"

Min-Sheng General Hospital has a very strong surgical team with most doctors having been educated at the National Taiwan University Hospital. The team has a wealth of experience and technology at its disposal. Moreover, it has accumulated multiple success stories through the professional division of labor and interdisciplinary treatment. Led by VP Dr. Wei-Jie Lee, the team believes it can protect the health of the citizens of Taoyuan.

Min-Sheng General Hospital Welcomes William Hoyios to the International Healthcare Team

2008-09-21T20:18:00.000-07:00

Min-Sheng's International Healthcare Department was established with the goals of gaining a foothold in the global health care market and expanding international health care। The center, newly moved to the hospital's B1 floor, has nine multi-lingual staff members। In addition to setting up service lines for international patients, a 24-hour service window has also been established in order to provide multi-language help to foreign patients coming from abroad, as well as those living in Taiwan। The international healthcare team recently met with various domestic partners and U.S. health insurance companies to establish relationships and facilitate cooperation. In addition, the center has also recently received attention from a number of internationally renowned media outlets successfully shaping Min-Sheng's brand image, such as US News and World Report, International Medical Travel Journal, Medical Tourism Association Magazine, Las Vegas Sun, and Chinese World Journal.

Min-Sheng International Healthcare Department has recently announced the addition of a new staff member: William Hoyios. Mr. Hoyios is fluent in five languages, including English, French, Dutch, German, and Chinese. He has lived in Taiwan for ten years and has served as a foreign language center manager with expertise in marketing, public relations, translation, and other areas. Making the transition into the medical services industry, Mr. Hoyios will add vitality and professionalism to the International Medical Center.
Mr. Hoyios stated that because he could see the international medical market in Taiwan would grow and develop in the future, he decided to join a hospital that had international accreditation (JCI). He currently serves as an international business development specialist. His projects include increasing public awareness of Min-Sheng amongst Taiwan's foreign population, expanding opportunities with U.S. insurance companies, developing the tourist groups coming to Taiwan, establish foreign group web consultation, assisting in the development of the overseas Chinese market and so on. In addition to assisting people through his language skills, Mr. Hoyios is looking forward to making the world aware of Min-Sheng's high quality medical services and placing Min-Sheng's high standards of medical care onto the international stage.
In recent years, people from the United States and around the world have chosen to go overseas for medical treatment, mostly to Asian countries, such as Taiwan, India, Thailand, and Singapore, not only to avoid long waits, but also to enjoy affordable medical services. Especially because Taiwan's medical technology and equipment have reached international standards, and because Taiwan is competitively priced, there will be lots of room for growth and development. Mr. Hoyios said that Taiwan's low cost medical services have already reached international standards and that he would like to increase Min-Sheng's brand image through word of mouth in order to attract more patients from around the world.

Brothers Elephant Baseball Team Helps Min-Sheng's Long Tan Campus Celebrate Two Decades of Service.

2008-09-07T19:52:00.000-07:00

Over the past 20 years, Min-Sheng's Long Tan branch has grown up healthy and strong. In celebration of its 20 year anniversary, several events took place over a seven day period, including an autograph session with members of the famous Brothers Elephant baseball team.
On the morning of August 7th, Chairman of Min-Sheng Health Care System Dr. Min-Sheng Yang led the anniversary celebrations, which were attended by many outstanding staff members and esteemed guests, such as Mayor Tsai of Long Tan. In the afternoon an autograph session with several members of the Brothers Elephant baseball team took place. Local residents were thrilled to have the opportunity to meet the star players face to face.

Since last year, the second floor of the Long Tan Hospital has been the site of the Child Development Center, and to go along with the celebrations, the center promoted early intervention activities that left those in attendance with a lasting impression.

Having always believed that its obligations to the community weren't limited to the practice of medicine, Min-Sheng purified the water in a local water well, and assisted in cleaning the surrounding environment. Concluding the activities, doctors from Min-Sheng led a series of health education seminars regarding topics such as life with hypertension, the diabetes diet, and so on.

"Min-Sheng Medical Rescue Team Successfully Discharges Two Preterm Infants"

2008-09-07T19:47:00.000-07:00

Min-Sheng announced the rescue of two preterm infants, one aged 26 weeks and weighing 995 grams, and the other aged 27 weeks and weighing 990 grams. The rescue once again established the excellent ability and high quality service provided by the Min-Sheng Neonatal Emergency Care Team.

The two preterm babies, Hao-Hao and Li-Jie, recovered quickly and were thrown a going away party by Min-Sheng's staff before being discharged from the hospital. Hao-Hao was born with a number of serious conditions, including respiratory distress syndrome, anemia, (which required a blood transfusion) apnea and sepsis. Astonishingly, after three months of diligent efforts by doctors and nurses, Hao-Hao weighed 2500 grams and bore no resemblance at all to a preterm infant. Li-Jie on the other hand, who is currently experiencing no complications, had suffered from apnea, hepatitis and other conditions, and had actually dropped down to 700 grams before eventually reaching his discharge weight of 2300 grams.

Hao-Hao and Li-Jie had the smallest birth weights on record in the Taoyuan area, which once again attests to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit's commitment to quality care. According to Min-Sheng Hospital's Neonatal Director Dr. Yee-Li Hung, Taiwan's birth rate has decreased over the years, yet the incidence of preterm infants is still very high. With the two births coming in May, Min-Sheng assigned an inter-division rescue team to the two cases. The medical team arduously worked for three months in order to stabilize the infants' health. Dr. Hung further noted that due to the various complications that arise in preterm infants' lungs, brains, hearts, etc., the medical team required a division of labor that not only called for a doctor of neonatal obstetrics and gynecology, but also specialists in pediatric surgery, cardiology, neurology, ophthalmology, and rehabilitation.

Founding chairman of the Preterm Infant Association and Min-Sheng's Deputy Superintendent and Chief Advisor of the Division of Women and Children, Dr. Yi-Hong Chow, said that Min-Sheng, by bringing together the integrity of maternal and child health care professionals, provides the Taoyuan area with sufficient ability to care for preterm infants in the most efficient manner. Additionally, Min-Sheng Hospital has benefited the Taoyuan area by providing immediate and comprehensive external referral services for high risk newborns

Congratulations! Min-Sheng Receives "Award of Excellence" from Taiwan Hospital Accreditation

2008-09-01T18:16:00.000-07:00

Min-Sheng's outstanding healthcare quality was recognized and awarded for excellence by the 2008 Taiwan Hospital Accreditation, announced by the Department of Health।

Among 22 hospitals surveyed this year, Min-Sheng was one of two regional hospitals and 10 medical centers awarded for excellence, demonstrating our superior performance in patient safety and health quality practices।

The survey was conducted from 6/18- 6/20. It included site visits, document reviews and interviews. This highly difficult task was achieved through hospital wide cooperation, led by VP Dr. Wei-Jei Lee and CEO Dr. Fred Yang. Everyone was thrilled by this great news.

To maintain the highest healthcare quality, Min-Sheng accomplished milestones of ISO standardization in Laboratory, Taiwan Hospital Accreditation and JCI hospital accreditation accordingly. In the future, Min-Sheng will continuously pursue goals of "patient-centered" service orientation and a "three-year quality cycle" in order to provide high quality and humane medical services, meet patients' needs, and create innovative values for Taiwan's healthcare industry.

Congratulations! Dr. Hsing-Han Chen Elected as the New Chairman of Taiwan Society of Occupational Medicine

2008-09-01T18:11:00.000-07:00

Taiwan Society of Occupational Medicine elected its new chairman, the Director of Min-Sheng General Hospital's International Heath Care Department, Dr। Chen Hsing Han, during its 11th board meeting at Tri-Service General Hospital on 7/27/2008.

Dr. Chen swore to be the new chairman at the handover ceremony testified by two former Chairmen. Dr. Chen has been with Min-Sheng since August 2002. During his tenure, he has held a number of high level positions including Deputy Superintendent and Director of Hyperbaric Medicine. Furthermore, he has served many years as the Director for the Society of Occupational Medicine.

Dr. Chen stated that he was able to obtain a majority of the votes mainly due to the fact that he works in a high quality establishment, such as Min-Sheng Hospital. Another factor that contributed to Dr. Chen's being elected as the chairman was his experience as a director in the Occupational Medicine Society. The amiable Dr. Chen has been whole-heartedly devoted to the society for many years.

Besides being a personal accomplishment for Dr. Chen, the election shines favorably on Min-Sheng Hospital. As soon as the hospital learned of the good news, posters were placed about the hospital so everyone could share in the joy.

After Dr. Chen takes over as chairman, he intends to advance the organization and occupational safety by working to reduce laborers' occupational injuries, safeguarding the security of laborers' work, and promoting the role and function of occupational disease doctors. He also believes it important to establish a system of industrial management doctors and nurse technicians by fully utilizing the society. Moreover, he would like to see the creation of an organization that safeguards both laborers and employers. Dr. Chen indicated that in the future the Society of Occupational Medicine will enthusiastically conduct occupational safety training courses, thus contributing to cooperation between management and workers, and a reduction in occupational disasters. He also emphasized interaction between occupational medicine societies on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, as well as other countries.

Min-Sheng Health Care System's Occupational Services Department has achieved a great deal with regard to foreign laborers and special examinations. According to Dr. Chen, Min-Sheng Chairman Dr. Yang, after receiving the news of Dr. Chen's appointment, said that being elected chairman of a nationwide medical society despite only coming from a regional hospital is no easy task. Besides expressing his congratulations, Chairman Dr. Yang also expressed his desire to contribute resources from his own hospital in support of the society, as well as in support of Taiwan's occupational disease prevention, and the advancement of cooperation between laborers and employers.
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Min-Sheng Hospital First in Taiwan to Install Self Service Kiosks

2008-08-29T02:13:00.000-07:00

In order to promote high quality service, Min-Sheng General has once again taken the lead by being the first hospital in the nation to introduce self service kiosks. These kiosks are different than those currently found on the market because in addition to having a dual payment function that accepts bank cards or credit cards ($700 NTD limit), the kiosks also provide appointment, out -patient clinic inquiries, information regarding all hospital services, national health insurance card renewal, etc. Due to the multitude of service functions, those going to see the doctor will be greatly benefited.

In addition, the operation interface has a user-friendly touch screen design that allows for more efficiency and speed when obtaining medical information. Most of all, the new kiosks will provide young and old with multipurpose high quality services at the touch of a button.
Director of Medical Information Dr. Wang Yao Hong indicated that kiosks are most commonly used in airports. Hospital Superintendant Dr. Fred Yang likes the convenience and futuristic aspects of the kiosks. He said that it took two years to work out all of the machines' glitches, but that investment will be worthwhile because the flow of patients coming in and out of the hospital will proceed much more smoothly. Other benefits include the rapid acquisition of necessary medical information, no waiting, and no service charge, thus providing patrons an ultra convenient and valuable experience.

At present, the hospital installed 20 self service kiosks. They will save patrons valuable time registering, paying, and finding information. Most importantly, the kiosks will lead the hospital in making the patient-oriented automated process. Dr. Wang Yao Hong points out that the transformation of the hospital into an e-medical service environment by adding the kiosks and various other IT related technologies will allow the hospital to run more smoothly and efficiently while at the same time avoiding unnecessary waiting and other complications. The hospital also hopes that through the assistance of information technology and science the transition to an e-medical service environment will take medical quality to an even higher level, and in the near future, provide patrons with a more user friendly and convenient e-platform.

For inquiries regarding the kiosks, please contact Ms. Chen at +886 3 317 9599 ext. 2045.

MissionCare, Inc. C.E.O. Dr. Fred Yang was invited to speak at Chung Yuan University regarding technological innovation and the medical industry

2008-08-03T19:03:00.000-07:00

In the next fifty to one hundred years, how will hospitals be different? If hospitals, doctors, and nurses are still around, the future will be wards at home and long distance medicine. This concept is called "houspital" (house + hospital).

In the past, the highest costs were associated with moving a patient from home into the hospital, running tests, examining patients, and lots of waiting. Actually, all of this waiting is wasteful because the time of patients and medical staff is extremely valuable. Furthermore, there are many areas of diagnosis which are still uncertain and unclear. These areas are high cost. So, if, through advancements in information technology and medical equipment, patients are no longer required to go to the hospital, then the majority of their problems can be resolved at home first.
Liberating Doctors and Nurses. This is an extremely important concept. Everyone can think it over for a moment. Presently, many of society's elite attend medical school to become doctors. But in actuality, what a doctor can do is much smaller than most imagine because of limitations from the national health insurance system. So, it is our responsibility to pursue alliances with different industries. Being connected to other industries will allow health care industry access to an array of different capabilities, and afterward, the production capabilities of doctors and nurses will be completely liberated. If a doctor is not limited by the front desk of the clinic, instead of seeing fifty to one hundred patients every morning, he can monitor the physiological signals of 20,000 to 50,000 patients. Now, that's one advanced transformation. I have high expectations for all of Chung Yuan's teachers and students. It's my sincere hope that all of you will, through technological innovation, assist us in liberating our production capabilities.

Min Sheng is currently in the midst of a two year U-Care plan. Thus far, after a year and a half, U-Care's implementation experience has concerned either a medical organization or the medical industry itself proactively connecting different industries. This includes the Shen Tong Corporation making the IT platform, as well as the cooperation of a few medical device companies, and insurance companies.

After that, the scope of U-Care will surpass the boundary limitation of a hospital and drive the development of new industry within the community. Finally, we hope to improve the health of the elderly, reduce the cost to the community, and spur new business.

Up to now, we have had approximately 250 patients participate in trial tests, which actually isn't many. In the next phase, beginning next year, we can apply for a new project, and I wish that everyone here, if you're willing to, can cooperate with us in presenting our project to the Ministry of Economic Affairs in order to apply for a new subject. This second phase will likely have a scope of two thousand people.

We can take Min-Sheng's patients out of the hospital monthly on a rolling basis using U-Care for appropriate illness conditions.
Innovative electronics achieve a service industry enabler. To give you an example, Instructor Lu's impressive glucose tester implant got me thinking about whether or not to place an implant in every patient. These implants could detect glucose levels, monitor heart rates, blood pressure, and immunity, while drastically reducing measurement costs. I've directly observed that the many hospital costs are spent on running tests, and obtaining measurements such as blood pressure and body temperature. Before examining a patient and diagnosing illnesses, doctors must first undertake all of these time consuming procedures. Furthermore, waiting for all of the measurements is a waste of time for patients and a big cost to them as well. If we can really place implants in patients' bodies, and do long distance measurements, then diagnosis will become much easier. In turn, this would really change the study of medicine and the definition of the hospital will change along with it. Therefore, fifty to a hundred years from now the concept of a hospital will be completely different.

Research and Development Instructor Zhong's electronic tongue system (a kind of basic taste imitation organism) made me think of a smart sensor. In fact, whether at the hospital or in the home, sensors will be extremely important because measurement costs are too high, especially the costs of having doctors and nurses doing the measurements manually. The advantages of sensors are speed and the ability to spot trends. If we had sensors on a large scale, we could precisely and quickly monitor 50,000 people at once, spotting trends at the same time. Currently, we have people willing to pay money because most people have their own insurance in addition to national health insurance! As long as measurements or smart sensors are able to change the whole community or an individual's risk profile, this business model will emerge. So, finally we hope that innovative electronic products can achieve a service industry enabler allowing service to become a possible medium and driving force.

Min-Sheng Celebrates 33rd Anniversary, unveils Taiwan's First Hospital Self Service Kiosks

2008-07-24T01:12:00.000-07:00

Taiwan's first JCI accredited hospital, and Taoyuan's largest regional hospital, Min-Sheng General, celebrated its 33rd anniversary on July 16th, 2008 with a series of festivities. Several high profile guests attended the event, including health ministers, legislators, and precinct leaders.
Over the past almost forty years that Min-Sheng has served the Taoyuan area its doctors and staff have continually received the praise of local residents. Taking the lead in the medical industry once again, Min-Sheng used this occasion to officially unveil its brand new self service kiosks. Min-Sheng is the first hospital in Taiwan to incorporate self service kiosks that allow patients to register and pay for appointments, thus saving patrons valuable time. Aside from saving time, the new devices will also improve the service of the hospital's clinics by making it easier and faster to browse patient information.
As part of the anniversary celebrations, Min-Sheng has officially declared this year as "The Year of Touching Service." Therefore, the hospital will continue with the mystery shopper surveys to ensure that high service standards are met. However, Min-Sheng would also like to make sure that the service and environment are both warm and friendly. That's why this year Min-Sheng held the Little Star Modeling Competition. The winner's picture will be displayed on posters throughout the hospital with reminders such as no smoking; keep voices down in hospital lobby; etc. It is hoped that the pictures of cute children accompanying the admonishments will enliven the environment and give patrons a warmer impression. A life size card board cut out was made of the child who won the competition. Several guests and patients present during the ceremony were impressed by the life sized cut out. They all felt that it would make future visitors and patients feel warm and happy. Moreover, they believed that the presence of children may alleviate patients' suffering.
The activities that took place in celebration of Min-Sheng's 33rd anniversary were the kiosk unveiling, star model ceremony, children's dance performance, and the annual stair climbing activity. To conclude the festivities, anniversary cake was served and one more dance was performed

Min-Sheng General Hospital Newly Establishes Diabetes Center

2008-07-17T18:23:00.000-07:00

Min-Sheng has officially established its new Diabetes Center located on the second floor of the Chin-Kuo campus. The ceremony took place on July 8th at the center and in the hospital's first floor lobby. The entire hospital staff along with several esteemed guests was invited to take part in the festivities which included speeches regarding diabetes and diabetic retinopathy. Additionally, Dr. Qiang Zhuang (a metabolism doctor) and ophthalmologist, Dr. Zhi-Kai Liang, were invited to speak at the event.

The diabetes rate in Taiwan is 5.8%, and in 2006, there were 77,574 people diagnosed with diabetes in Taoyuan County alone. Not only is the cost of treating diabetes high, but the disease makes it easy to contract various chronic illnesses. Hence, it is necessary to have a team of diabetes specialists to provide care. As part of Min-Sheng's goals of safeguarding local patients by providing high quality care and service, two members from the National Taiwan University Hospital have been invited to consult at the diabetes center: Professor Dong-Yuan Dai and Consultant Wen-Jie Ke. The center will integrate community based medicine with comprehensive care. Through the cooperation of the community and the hospital, the Taoyuan area will be provided with the best available service.

Director of the Diabetes Center, Dr. Zhi-Ming Chen stated: "From this day forth, the local residents will greatly benefit from the services provided by this center. Far from being limited to doctors, it will be all of this center's members who will make it a success. That includes the nurses, administrators, nutritionists, and so on. Furthermore, the center's new state of the art eye scanning equipment will afford diabetes patients the most comprehensive follow up care available."

The deputy director of the Diabetes Center, Dr. Guan-Qun Zhang, said: "Through the establishment of this center, patients will be able to receive complete care and service that includes examinations, tests, education, and follow up. Aside from reducing and postponing the incidence of illness, it will protect patients' health and at the same time control medical costs, which is a big win for everyone.

Moreover, the integration of U-Care and telemedicine will ensure case management follow up. Not only that, but patient centered, long distance health care will also allow sufferers of diabetes access to high quality medical care. Eventually, telemedicine is bound to become a new health care market."

Min-Sheng Wins Two Awards, Including Number One Health Care Group

2008-07-07T18:29:00.000-07:00

Min-Sheng General Hospital has been awarded two prestigious awards by the Taoyuan County Bureau of Health regarding volunteer work: Number One Health Care Group and Most Improved.

Min-Sheng’s founder, Dr. Min-Sheng Yang, has undertaken a host of philanthropic projects in his time. Among them, he has provided hospital beds for the needy, expanded and integrated social resources, and established a volunteer network. Since the beginning, there have been many enthusiastic volunteers, including a group of mothers, religious volunteers, young people, business leaders, etc. who have participated in a wide array of civic and charitable activities.

Participating in the accreditation process this time were 34 groups (20 medical groups and 14 health groups). The surveyors from the Bureau of Health were on-site May 5th, 2008. They were deeply impressed with the hospital’s volunteer network and its nine large innovation projects.

Min-Sheng’s volunteer network has received much praise lately, and this month received the government’s highest honor by being rated the number one medical group and most improved. Through Ms. Yan-Qiu Chen’s(Public Affairs Office) selfless devotion to charitable works and unmatched determination, the number of volunteers has rapidly increased to 180. Ms. Chen stated that preparing for accreditation took a year and a half. She went on to say that although many felt that the task couldn’t be done, she and the other volunteers were determined to make the impossible possible, and didn’t relent until they had accomplished their mission.
Min-Sheng’s endless devotion to philanthropy and innovation provide patients and family members with humanitarian and international services. For example, the hospital has interpreters for eight different languages, innovative services, and enthusiastic volunteers. Deputy C.E. O. Charles Chang said that winning the top award from the Taoyuan County Health Bureau is the same as winning a national award for the entire country seeing that the Taoyuan Health Bureau has been the country’s number one health bureau for the past several years.

Min-Sheng’s director of social services pointed out that the volunteer network has integrated community resources, and has gotten staff involved in volunteer work and education as well. He added that in the future the hospital will pursue social resources, as well as the cooperation of the nearby Tong-An police station and the health bureau in order to give even more back to the community.

Min-Sheng’s Foray into the World of Medical Tourism Continues to Receive Media Coverage

2008-07-07T18:22:00.000-07:00

After being interviewed by Las Vegas’ largest newspaper, the Las Vegas Sun, and the largest overseas Chinese newspaper, the World Journal, during a trip to the U.S. in May, Min-Sheng was later mentioned in the May issue of U. S. News and World Report. The issue, which centered on medical travel, included Min-Sheng in a list of the world’s top 42 hospitals for medical travel.

Additionally, Min-Sheng is in the June edition of the International Medical Travel Journal which focuses on how an open door policy between Taiwan and mainland China will affect both sides of the straight with regards to medical tourism. Furthermore, the article classified Min-Sheng as one of five hospitals in Taiwan providing medical tourism services. The article provides a half page description of Min-Sheng’s specialties and services as well.

San-San Liao, an International Health Care Center specialist, stated: “Without direct cross-straight flights, Mainland Chinese patients may choose to receive health care in Hong Kong rather than in Taiwan. However, the capacity of Hong Kong health care is limited. With the availability of direct flights, China patients will have more access to quality health care.”

Ms. Liao also shared Min-Sheng’s international management experience, including the source of Min-Sheng’s international customers, the hospital’s latest technology, its medical specialties, etc.

Min-Sheng Founder Reflects on 33 Years of Success During Recent Accreditation Process

2008-07-03T00:10:00.000-07:00

First of all, I’d like to begin by representing Min-Sheng’s thousand plus staff members in welcoming the surveyors and the rest of our honored guests. I strongly believe that the 48 hour accreditation process will greatly benefit our hospital and staff.

Min-Sheng was established thirty-three years ago, and although it’s a private organization with limited resources, we’ve never been shy or self conscious about who we are; with tenacity and gumption, we’ve continually strived to overcome any and all obstacles standing in our path.

Early on, after returning from Tai-Da to start a hospital in my hometown of Taoyuan, my only desire was to provide medical care for the local residents and allow them to be able to receive quality care without having to go too far from home. We radually blossomed and our patient centered outlook led us to become a small hospital chain. By the end of the last century, we felt that the medical environment had undergone huge changes resulting in the need for a large scale hospital in order to attract the top talent and to firmly establish ourselves in an extremely competitive environment. Therefore, we made the announcement to our shareholders and staff that we were once again purchasing land in order to build a new hospital. Two years later, Min-Sheng’s Ching-Kuo campus became the health care system’s flagship hospital.

This year marks Min-Sheng General Hospital’s eight year anniversary. The challenges posed by SARS and the limitations of national health insurance reimbursements hindered the progress of the new hospital for the first few years. Then, three years ago, former superintendant of Tai-Da Hospital, Professor Yuan-De Li, and several excellent young physicians from Tai-Da joined the team. Aided by this strong new team and the leadership of Professor Li, Min-Sheng was able to overcome many obstacles and rise to success. Moreover, the young superintendant, Dr. Fred Yang, through a series of astute financial maneuvers, such as the sale and lease back deal with ING, rendered the hospital a debt free organization.

Under the leadership C.E.O. Yuan-De Li, we were able to attain international accreditation. Last year, we were even brave enough to pursue the National Quality Award. Although we fell just short of receiving the award, it was nevertheless an invaluable experience. Additionally, Superintendant Fred Yang is in the midst of ensuring that the health care needs of local residents are met.

Because the current era of health care is dominated by national health insurance, and hospitals everywhere are subject to its control, hospital behavior is the same all over. Ultimately, health care providers have never faced such daunting challenges. Min-Sheng understands that it is powerless to resist national health insurance reimbursement. However, we must do our best to minimize its effects by developing international medicine, medical tourism, VIP health examinations, elder care, web based medicine, and self pay services. Furthermore, we must learn from other industries’ development models in order to maximize our efficiency and create the most value. These are our future goals.

Of course, medical safety is still our number one priority. Presently, we very much look forward to any advice from the national health officials as to how we can improve and exceed the standards set by the National Ministry of Health. Finally, I’d like to once again thank everyone for his or her efforts during the accreditation process.

(The above content comes from Chairman Yang)

CEO Dr. Fred Yang Shared Min-Sheng's Successful Experience with Hainan Bureau of Health, China

2008-06-15T18:28:00.000-07:00

CEO Dr. Fred Yang was invited to speak on Taiwan's successful health administration experience at Hainan Bureau of Health, China. He also spoke on health care quality at Chan-Jian 2nd Citizen Hospital during his visit to China.

Dr. Fred Yang's speech was "Strategy Analysis of Hospital Expansion" and it attracted more than 300 attendees from senior executives of the top six hospitals in Hai-Kuo. In the speech, Dr. Fred Yang brilliantly analyzed the key contributors of Taiwan's success and he emphasized that "continuous quality improvement is the navigator in the journey to success."

The next day Dr. Fred Yang attended the sign unveiling ceremony of Chan-Jian 2nd Citizen Hospital and was awarded the letter of appointment as the senior consultant by the Chan-Jian County Governor. Later on Mrs. Fiona Shi, the Deputy Director of Nursing of Min-Sheng General Hospital, had a presentation of "A Micro Perspective- Min-Sheng's Nursing Management." In the speech Mrs. Fiona Shi talked about her experience of nursing management and JCI accreditation preparation at Min-Sheng. After the speech, attendees were highly interested in Taiwan's hospital administration strategies and were eager to know more about issues of physician-patient relationship, staff education, and quality management and personnel cost control.

Chan-Jian 2nd Citizen Hospital is a well-known secondary hospital with 300 beds at Hainan. According to Mrs. Fiona Shi, the senior leaders of hospital and health system in Hainan Chan-Jian would like to overcome challenges and barriers of hospital administration. Min-Sheng's successful model will guide them in making overall revolutionary changes in the future development of hospital management, and system development. By the sharing of Taiwan experience, Min-Sheng hopes to inspire China hospitals in pursuing excellence and safe healthcare. Min-Sheng will also provide on-going assistance in building up China's health administration system, and further improves the healthcare quality in Greater China areas.

According CEO Dr. Fred Yang, Min-Sheng Hospital will have a close cooperation with hospitals in Hainan, including staff exchange and management consulting. Dr. Fred Yang's visit and speech was highly recognized by the health professionals in Hainan. Min-Sheng Healthcare System will also actively participate in the establishment of hospital accreditation organization planned by Hainan Bureau of Health.

Countdown to the Birth of Asia's Leading Medical Brand Begins

2008-06-15T18:11:00.000-07:00

Taiwan's number one health care provider is investing in a professional management and medical services organization-Sheng Hong Medical Company, and by the end of the year investors will be able to purchase the company's stock over the counter.

Sheng Hong's operational model calls for providing innovative and comprehensive medical services. Sheng-Hong's wealth of health care experience and ability should enable it to effectively integrate and vigorously develop this potential market, maximizing profit and value. In addition to providing professional health checks, medical exams, and management consulting and outsourcing services, Hong-sheng will combine with Min-Sheng to provide increased purchasing power, integrate information systems, channel operational methods, provide optimization and cost management, satisfy the pharmaceutical needs of clients, and meet the demand for medical equipment and quality management. The estimated yearly turnover is expected to surpass one billion NTD, enabling Sheng-Hong to become Taiwan's leading medical services brand.

The non-stop success of the Sheng-Hong team along with its strengths such as honest service, and excellent management quality results, has won the praise of a multitude of different companies. As a result, Taiwan's own Bai Da Industrial, several listed technology companies, and well known airlines have become Sheng-Hong's faithful customers.

Recently, due to Sheng-Hong's successfully obtaining Taiji Electric's business, Sheng-Hong has earned the trust of several other large companies such as You-da Opto-Electric. This in turn, has paved the way for Sheng-Hong to become the designated health care management organization of these companies. Sheng-Hong is also pursuing the business of Hua-shuo, Qun Chuang, and five other publicly listed companies. Sheng-Hong has successfully expanded its business territory by obtaining over 600 contracts for health checks and medical management associations.

Looking ahead, Sheng-Hong's next big milestone will be developing and marketing its own medical equipment and products. The company has already very carefully chosen high potential developing markets as well as high potential products. Ultimately, they will integrate preventative medicine with bio-technology. Furthermore, in order to create a steady revenue stream, Sheng-Hong will build its own brand and expand its business management and service territories.

Since the beginning of the year, Sheng-Hong has been preparing for its IPO. The employees enthusiastically applied to buy all of the stock that was available to them. Because its employees believe so strongly in the company's future, demand for the stock far surpassed expectations. The company is moving full speed ahead with its preparation and intends to apply for its listing by October of 2008. By the fourth quarter of 2009, the company will have its IPO becoming Min-sheng Health Care System's first publicly listed company.

Sharing United States long term care business ideas and business models

2008-06-15T18:09:00.000-07:00

Min-Shing Long Term Care Deputy Chief Chen Peng-Xuan invited Dr. Yang Yihong, receipent of the "2007 Outstanding Asian-American entrepreneurs, winner of the U.S.", "2007 National Taipei College of Nursing Outstanding Alumni" to share her United States experience and ideas with the Min-Sheng long term care Staff. Dr. Yang has nursing back ground and a law degree.

Dr. Yang and her husband owned 3 long term care centers in the U.S. They have successfully turned around failing Long Term Care Centers in a very short time frame. She shared with the staff her experiences of hard ships and obstacles. She described her management philosophy, marketing strategy and resident focused care. Her wealth of knowledge and generous teaching provided us boarder view of the global long term health care needs. Min-Sheng Long Term Health Care Service had been reorganized recently in order to further enhanced and improved the long term care product line. The experience sharing from Dr. Yang's description of an excellent global level of long term facility has helped us to set our target. As result of Dr. Yang's visit and speech, we have been energerized and motivated to implement some of her idea in order to elevate long term care to higher level of quality.

Amazing Gastric Bypass Bariatric Surgery Not Only ReducesWeight But Also Helps Type II Diabetes-Min-Sheng Announces its 1000th Case

2008-06-15T18:04:00.001-07:00

Min-Sheng's Asia-Pacific Laparoscopic Bariatric Center announced its 1000th case of gastric bypass bariatric surgery performed by Professor Dr. Lee Wei-Jei on May 6th 2008. The center is also an internationally recognized research center for bariatric surgeries,and has been publishing over 30 international papers and trained more than 40 physicians from over 15 countries.

The center invited Mrs. Shi to share her testimonial of a successful weight reduction by gastric bypass bariatric surgery. Before she received the surgery her weight was 132kg last year, and now her weight is 61.8kg, with a significant reduction of 70kg. According to Prof. Dr. Lee Wei-Jei, his 1000 patients have reduced weight on average of 22kg in 3 months after such surgery, and 39.8 kg in 1 year after the surgery. The surgery is one of the most effective weight reduction methods and it's 99.8% safe. Now there are many patients in overseas countries making appointment for such surgery.

The research team of Min-Sheng bariatric center found that such surgery has an amazing effect on treating difficult diabetes. Dr Lee said, obesity is the most important risk factor of type II diabetes.

Among Min-Sheng's 1000 cases, 201 cases were diabetes patients, but up to 87.1% of their diabetes were cured after the surgery. Mr. Tzeng is a typical case that benefited from this surgery. Previously his weight was 196kg and he was diagnosed to have type II diabetes with glycated hemoglobin level up to 7.1. In the case his diabetes condition was very difficult to be cured by traditional treatment methods. Only one month after he received this surgery he lost 20kg and his glycated hemoglobin has down to 5.6, which is within normal range. This incredible treatment outcome has been published on American Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery in October 2007, which is the first successful research project in Asia.

Currently Min-Sheng General Hospital together with National Taiwan University Hospital are assigned by the University of Minnesota to conduct an international research in surgical treatment for difficult diabetes. In its first 30 cases, the cure rate is 85% with 100% safety. Dr. Lee's such research outcome has raised great attention in the world, and he has been invited to present this research findings
in the annual congress of American Society for Metabolic & Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS) next month. Diabetes center of National Taiwan University Hospital will accept another 30 studying cases in the 2nd stage of research. Please consult with the center if you are interested in participating this study.

A Revolutionary Advancement in Treating Cardiovascular

2008-06-15T18:01:00.000-07:00

Department Between Cardiovascular Medicine and Cardiovascular Surgery
to Achieve the Best Possible Cardiac Care Outcome

Emergency rescue in the shortest time is critical for patient with cardiovascular disease. Now Min-Sheng's Chief Medical Consultant Dr.Ko from National Taiwan University, together with many health administration experts, established the Department of Cardiovascular Medicine that first integrates cardiology and cardiac surgery specialties to provide excellent seamless care beginning on May 1st 2008.

The mission of Min-Sheng's Department of Cardiovascular Medicine is to provide patient-centered multidisciplinary care. Min-Sheng General Hospital performed Taoyuan's first open-heart surgery in 2000. The hospital also installed Taiwan's first and only Electron Beam Tomography (EBT) in 2002 for cardiovascular disease prevention. Up to now the hospital has provided cardiovascular invasive preventions to more than 13,000 patients. In addition, Min-Sheng also provided one of the few 24-hour "cardiac rescue team" and "ECMO rescue team" to ensure patients arrived in the emergency room received PTCA procedures within 90 minutes (which is the international standards). Min-Sheng's cardliovascular team also provides Taiwan's first Endovascular Repair of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm and other advanced procedures like Off-pump Coronary Artery Bypass and Minimally Invasive Endovenous Laser Therapy. These significant milestones showed Min-Sheng's advancement and efforts in continuous quality improvement.

Hemo-dialysis is often the only choice for most patients suffering from end-stage renal diseases. For such patients, their nephrostomy tubes are often applied through the technique of PTCA catheterizations to open their veins. Min-Sheng now cooperates with Enfield Medical Company, Taiwan's biggest dialysis supplier, featuring "Total Care in One Visit" that provides comprehensive venous access for dialysis patients.

Dr. Fred Yang said: "The ability to provide critical cardiac care is fundamental to a larger hospital like Min-Sheng." JCI hospital accreditation has driven Min-Sheng to operate at a world-class quality level, now we intent to pursue JCI Disease-Specific Certificate that will make us Taiwan's first and only certified cardiovascular center.

Min-Sheng's Volunteer Team Provided Free Haircut to Moms

2008-06-15T17:57:00.000-07:00

Founder Dr. Min-Sheng Yang established Min-Sheng's volunteer team in 1984. After years of cultivation now the team has more than 170 volunteers to provide support to patients such as book cart, companionship, prayer and spiritual support. The volunteers also enthusiastically participate in many charity activities and have been widely recognized for their contribution to the community. On Mother's Day the volunteer team invited 10 professional haircut designers to provide free haircuts,manicure and facial treatments for moms at Yee-Der Long-Term Care Center. After this activities moms were happy and satisfied with their new looks.

Group from Min-Sheng Hospital Attends Two Marketing Events in U.S.

2008-06-10T18:38:00.000-07:00

Since the establishment of the International Health Care Department at Min-Sheng Hospital earlier this year, the hospital continues to strive to position itself globally. On May 3, 2008 a group from the hospital, led by Chief Quality Officer Connie Ma, arrived in the U.S. with the intention of attending two separate marketing events. First, they attended the 2008 Health Care Globalization Summit in Las Vegas. Next, they traveled to Los Angeles for the Taiwan Culture Fest. During both events, many attendees visited Min-Sheng’s booth. More impressive, though, was the fact that Ming-Sheng garnered the attention of the international media, and was interviewed by both English and Chinese newspapers, radio stations, and T.V. news channels. Moreover, many Taiwanese living in the Los Angeles area were so impressed by Min-Sheng’s presence at the Taiwan Culture Fest that they expressed their intentions to return to Taiwan to receive VIP health checks, and other forms of care.

The Health Care Globalization Summit is a bi-annual event that brings together health care experts, multinational insurance companies, medical travel brokers, banks, technology companies, and international hospitals for the purpose of discussing the latest trends in medical tourism, and allowing the participants to engage in mutually beneficial business activities. E-Da Hospital of Kaohsiung attended the event along with Min-Sheng. The event served two purposes: First, it enabled both hospitals to promote their services. Second, it provided the opportunity to place Taiwan health care squarely on the world stage.

During the event, Min-Sheng proudly showcased its JCI accreditation, its top surgeons’ credentials, and its services. The GM of a large American technology company stopped by Min-Sheng’s booth for a friendly chat. He had traveled to Taiwan several times on business in the past, yet he had no idea that Taiwan offered such high quality health care at such an affordable price. Afterward, the gentleman said that he would recommend that the employees at his company’s Taiwan branch office all go to Min-Sheng for a VIP health check.

Also in attendance was Patients Beyond Borders author Dr. Joseph Woodman. Dr. Woodman visited Min-Sheng last year and was so impressed by his visit that he remains committed to future collaboration with the hospital. Dr. Woodman’s praise along with the positive media coverage attained by attending the event will bolster Min-sheng’s chances of signing contracts with many large American insurance companies in the future.

While in Las Vegas, Min-sheng was interviewed by the largest newspaper in Las Vegas, the Las Vegas Sun ((http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2008/may/07/peddling-medical-getaways/) and the largest overseas Chinese Newspaper in the U.S., the World Journal (http://www.worldjournal.com/wj-la-news.php?nt_seq_id=1712351).

Immediately following the event in Las Vegas, the group from Min-Sheng drove to Los Angeles to for the Taiwan Culture Fest. One of Min-Sheng’s target markets is overseas Chinese. Due to the large overseas Chinese population in the L.A. area, this event represented a very significant marketing opportunity for the hospital. Many local Taiwanese attending the event were excited to learn that they could expect to receive the same level of care and service that they were accustomed to receiving in the U.S. at a fraction of the U.S. cost. They were also intrigued to learn that Min-Sheng had designed a health check package specifically with overseas Chinese in mind. The package includes a health checkup, hotel reservations, tour arrangements, and other amenities.

In L.A., Min-Sheng was interviewed by a local Chinese news channel (Channel 18) as well as Taiwan’s Dong Sen news channel.

One local Taiwanese resident, who had received a health check at Min-Sheng in the past, was very surprised when he came across the hospital’s booth at the fair. He said, “Seeing Min-Sheng here at the fair in L.A. is like running into an old friend unexpectedly while traveling abroad… It’s a really friendly feeling.” He went on to add that he would refer his friends to receive health checks at Min-Sheng in the future.

The leader of Min-Sheng’s group, Chief Quality Officer Connie Ma believed that the trip was a success on multiple levels: First, it allowed Min-Sheng to display its strengths. Second, the hospital gained widespread media exposure while at the same time getting the attention of many insurance companies.

The journey across the Pacific is a major milestone for Taiwan and Min-Sheng Hospital. The health care group made large strides toward its goals of establishing a foothold in the international health care market, and creating value for the health care market as a whole. While the trip may have been a small step for Min-Sheng, it was a major step for Taiwan health care as we are now competes along side with Singapore, Thailand, etc.

Min-Sheng to Begin Medical Exchange with Japan’s Aoikai Medical Corporation

2008-06-10T18:26:00.000-07:00

Min-sheng’s Professor/Physician Po Kuang Chen, also Chairman of the Asia Pacific Orthopaedic Association. He earned his Ph.D. from the Tokyo University School of Medicine. Through his connection in Japan, Professor Chen, MissionCare, Inc. and Aoikai Medical Corporation of Japan agreed to sign a letter of intent which stipulates the exchange of medical personnel for training purposes, and the sharing of medical resources.

During Aoikai’s visit, Professor Chen expressed his belief that Min-Sheng’s health care system is one of the few world class health care systems in Taiwan. Since the formal establishment of the International Health Care Center in February, 2008, Min-Sheng has become a new player on the global health care scene. In this short period of time, Dr. Chen shared his expertise with several health care organizations, and provided international training to physicians.

Aoikai Medical Corporation is famous for rehabilitation medicine and nursing care. In addition to visiting each of Min-sheng’s centers of excellence, the group from Japan also visited Min-sheng’s Rehabilitation Department, and the Yee-Der Nursing Center.

During the visit, the two parties signed a letter of intent which includes a plan to exchange medical personnel, an annual meeting, and the sharing of medical quality knowledge. After attaining JCI accreditation, Min-sheng established an alliance with Hong Kong Adventist Hospital. As part of the alliance the hospitals agreed to exchange medical personnel for a period of 15 months. Min-Sheng expects that the alliance with the Japanese medical organization will greatly improve medical and service quality, and gradually achieving fruition Min-Sheng’s goal of becoming a major player in the international medical community.

"Dual Core" to promote your health-Grand Opening of High Speed 64-Slice MDCT Imaging Center

2008-04-27T20:45:00.000-07:00

Min-Sheng General Hospital, Taiwan first JCI accredited Hospital, celebrated the newly installation of up-to-date high speed 64-slice MDCT machine and the opening of Executive Imaging Center today. Min-Sheng is the only hospital that equipped with both 3D Electron Beam Tomography (EBT) and 64-Slice MDCD scans in Taiwan. These two scanners serve as the "Dual Core" of cardiovascular health promotion.

Min-Sheng's Executive Imaging Center provides the unique and comprehensive health screening special for cardiovascular diseases. It is also one of Min-Sheng's centers of excellences that focus on disease prevention and health promotion, instead of disease treatment. The imaging reading quality in the Executive Imaging Center is comparable to that of National Taiwan University Hospital. From now on people can save their long travel hours and receive same high level of care just within the community.

Lily Chen Turns Tables on Long Term Care Management

2008-04-16T19:24:00.000-07:00

Only three months after joining Yee-Der Long Term Care Center, Lily Chen had stopped its long-lasting deficit, and enabled the center to reach full capacity and financial breakeven in January 2008. According to Lily Chen, always being determined, committed, and grasping key strategies are her secrets to success.
Lily Chen's excellent performance comes from her wide range of health care management experience, including nursing, insurance, information, accounting, strategic planning, public relations and marketing.
Ms. Chen went on to say that the key strategies used to boost Yee-Der's census were creating better internal communication and teamwork, improving care quality and increasing resident satisfaction, enhancing marketing and expanding customer channels, and building up community interaction. Lily Chen also aptly utilizes resources from the Min-Sheng Healthcare System as sources of backup.

Min-Sheng Welcomes the New Chief Advisor of Cardiac Surgery

2008-04-16T19:21:00.000-07:00

The new Chief Advisor of Cardiac Surgery Professor Dr. Chen Yee-Shiung, one of the top surgeons from National Taiwan University Hospital, is experienced and specialized in adult and pediatric cardiac surgery. Professor Chen actively participates in several academic and research medical societies. He is also one of the leaders in his field who combine CPR and ECMO when treating patients. He has accumulated nearly 150 such cases accounting for almost half of the total amount (appr. 300 cases) in the world.

After bringing Professor Chen on board, Min-Sheng is now ready to upgrade its treatment model of integrating cardiologists and cardiac surgeons. Furthermore, Min-sheng will also introduce this model at its branch hospitals, thus providing better care to more patients.

Primary Care Physicians Join Min-Sheng's U-Care Project

2008-04-15T19:31:00.000-07:00

Min-Sheng has expanded its operations into the senior tele-care field, and has invited 23 primary care physicians to participate in the "U-Care" home care alliance project. Min-Sheng collaborates with several industrial and academic partners to apply this U-Care project from the Ministry of Economic Affairs.

Under the U-Care project, primary care physicians play an important role in forming the "Core Center," a senior care service platform, and directly provide care to senior citizens within the community. Through the operation of the Core Center and several electronic devices, physicians can continuously monitor and analyze seniors' physiological data as reference of diagnosis or early intervention. Physicians will also proactively contact seniors if any unusual data is found. Min-Sheng currently runs five "Integrated Delivery System (IDS) Primary Care Physician Groups" including 37 physicians in 34 clinics.