KPJ Healthcare Berhad

KPJ GETS INVITE TO EXTEND OPS TO AFRICA, MIDEAST

The Star - KPJ Healthcare Bhd has received many business proposals from parties in the African and Middle Eastern countries to extend its operations there.

JOHOR BARU: KPJ Healthcare Bhd has received many business proposals from parties in the African and Middle Eastern countries to extend its operations there.

Chairman Tan Sri Muhammad Ali Hashim said the company was always willing to talk with parties interested in the healthcare-related business.

“We have to carefully consider the proposals before going into these countries and will go only if the business model is viable for us,’’ Ali said after the company AGM yesterday.

He said the company’s main focus now was to further strengthen its position in the country’s private healthcare segment by providing quality services. However, this will not stop the company from expanding its operations internationally if there are good business prospects and opportunities.

Presently, KPJ Healthcare has 19 hospitals in all states in Malaysia except in Malacca, Terengganu and Perlis, and six hospitals overseas - one in Bangladesh, two in Saudi Arabia and three in Indonesia.

Meanwhile, managing director Datin Paduka Siti Sa’diah Sheikh Bakir said its future expansion plans included growth through acquisition of stand-alone hospitals.

“We are also planning to build new hospitals in Johor Baru, including one in Iskandar Malaysia, the Klang Valley, Kuantan and Kuching,’’ she said.

Sa’diah said the company would open its third KPJ International College of Nursing and Health Sciences campus branch in Bukit Mertajam this year. The first two colleges are in Nilai and Johor Baru.

She said the Penang campus would operate at its Bukit Mertajam Specialist Hospital once the hospital was relocated by end-May to the KPJ Penang Specialist Hospital, which would open next month.

The Penang campus would cater to nursing students in the northern states and Indonesia, especially from Sumatra, Sa’diah said, adding that the company would collaborate with Universiti Sains Malaysia to offer a four-year Bachelor of Pharmacy course and invest RM5mil in the establishment of five laboratories for pharmacy programme.

For the financial year ended Dec 31 (FY08), KPJ Healthcare recorded pre-tax profit of RM114mil on revenue of RM1.27bil compared with RM85.3mil and RM1.11bil respectively in FY07.

For the first quarter ended March 31, it recorded pre-tax profit of RM31.7mil on revenue of RM338.7mil against RM31.4mil and RM304.7mil respectively in the previous corresponding quarter.