Healthcare industry in growth

Growth potential of the healthcare industry

05/07/2012

The sales and profits in the healthcare industry have been growing for years. Hundreds of billions of euros are spent in this country every year in the health sector. Thus, the health care sector is also a future industry from an economic point of view, the experts reported at the 8th National Conference on Healthcare Industry in Rostock-Warnemünde.

For the eighth time, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern hosted the National Sector Conference Health Economy on behalf of the Federal Government. This is where the Who's Who of the health service met under this year's motto „Experience health! Aspects of cross-industry cooperation“. On the two days of the congress (4 and 5 July) more than 600 national and international experts from the health industry came to Rostock-Warnemünde.

400 billion sales in the healthcare industry
Around 400 billion euros, according to the experts, the estimated sales of the healthcare industry. In his welcoming speech, the Prime Minister of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Erwin Sellering (SPD), explained that the industries will also be considered at this year's industry conference, „which are already closely intertwined with the health economy“, to discuss the potential of non-sector companies in the healthcare market. „In this context, we focus on topics such as the cooperation of health economics and the creative industries, holistic health concepts and the potential of natural resources“, so continue to sell. Examples of possible new lines of business included the production of ergonomic furniture, the aging of housing and the development of tools for the elderly. The health industry offers „Opportunities for areas that we have not yet had in mind“, explained the Prime Minister of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.

Health economy as an export engine?
Federal Minister of Health Daniel Bahr (FDP) added that not only the inner German market offers enormous growth potential for the healthcare industry, but also good export opportunities exist. Last but not least, the growing number of international participants in the National Sector Conference on the Healthcare Industry shows great interest in German medical technology, telemedicine and the organization of clinics. State-of-the-art medical procedures developed in Germany are used worldwide.

As part of the industry conference, the Prime Minister of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern also referred to the importance of the private sector in the development of new products and processes. For example, the so-called cyberknife method, which is used in cancer surgery for robot-assisted radiation treatment, was originally launched as a privately paid offer by the healthcare industry. Today, however, 120 health insurance companies are already paying the costs for the procedure, the chairman of the association BioCon Valley reported , Horst Klinkmann. Even abroad, there is already interest in cyberknife technology.

Healthcare industry in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania the most important growth industry
According to Erwin Sellering, the development of the healthcare industry in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania is quite gratifying and last year alone around 3,000 new jobs were created. About fourteen percent of the economic output of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania is attributable to the health sector, which roughly corresponds to twice the national average, the Prime Minister continued. However, attention must be paid here to a fair remuneration of employees, stressed Sellering, with a view to the approximately 300 demonstrators who protested in front of the conference center against lowering the remuneration for home care by the AOK Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The Prime Minister of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania told the nurses in this context, he would try to bring the AOK back to the negotiating table. (Fp)

Image: Thomas Siepmann