Coming: Sunway's first hospital in the South

 

Sunway Healthcare Group (SHG), one of the leading integrated private healthcare groups in Malaysia, will be opening their first hospital in Sunway City Iskandar Puteri, scheduled for completion in 2030 with a capacity of more than 400 beds.

 

Seated among media, VIP guests and representatives from Johor government agencies under a tent on a warm and sunny morning for the groundbreaking ceremony, I listened to the speeches that outlined the plans to build a state-of-the-art multi-specialty tertiary hospital, with an estimated total capital expenditure of RM800 million.

 

Unlike previous simpler sites for groundbreaking ceremonies in Iskandar Puteri which I had the privilege to witness some 17 years ago, the wooden floorboard under my feet was carpeted, the huge tent had a billowy canopy with a stage and LED screen backdrop, complete with lighting and sound-system in a proper outdoor set-up.

 

The event proceeded smoothly upon the arrival of the VIPs who were welcomed to their seats in the front row. They were YB Lee Ting Han, Chairman of the Johor State Investment, Trade, Consumer Affairs and Human Resources Committee, representing the Johor Menteri Besar.

 

Along with Sunway Group Founder and Chairman Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Sir Jeffrey Cheah KBE AO, other VIPs included Datin Paduka Sarena Cheah, Sunway Group Executive Deputy Chairman, Datuk Anuar Taib, Sunway Group President, Dato' Lau Beng Long, Sunway Healthcare Group President, Chung Soo Kiong, Sunway Property Group Managing Director and Gerard Soosay, Sunway Property Southern Region Chief Executive Officer.

 

The official tagline and motto for the
Sunway Healthcare Group: Improving the lives we touch

With an established extensive network of hospitals and healthcare services throughout the nation, the Sunway Healthcare Group aims to replicate the comprehensive range of specialist services, supported by advanced medical technologies and patient-centred treatment facilities in the Sunway Medical Centre Iskandar Puteri (SMCIP).

 

Located adjacent to the Sunway Big Box Retail Park, the SMCIP will have an integrated Cancer and Nuclear Medicine Centre that offers radiotherapy and nuclear medicine services. It will also focus on key specialties such as Cardiovascular, Oncology, Neuroscience, Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Orthopaedics, as well as Women and Children’s Health.

 

Strategically situated near the Johor–Singapore Special Economic Zone and the Johor Bahru–Singapore Rapid Transit System Link scheduled to be ready by early next year, the hospital is well positioned to support Johor’s growing population and its development as a regional hub for commerce, industry, healthcare and medical tourism.

 

“The development of Sunway Medical Centre Iskandar Puteri reflects continued investor confidence in Johor and complements the State Government’s efforts to strengthen our healthcare ecosystem,” said YB Lee Ting Han, Chairman of the Johor State Investment, Trade, Consumer Affairs and Human Resources Committee.

 

“In addition to expanding access to quality specialist care, I trust that this project will create skilled employment opportunities and contribute to the continued growth of Iskandar Puteri and the wider Johor economy,” he added.

 

SMCIP is expected to employ a workforce of more than 1,400 healthcare professionals upon its targeted completion. The hospital will have more than 45 intensive care beds and over 130 ambulatory care beds, supported by more than 80 consultation suites, 10 operating theatres and two catheterisation laboratories.

 

Sunway Healthcare Group President Dato’ Lau Beng Long said Sunway Medical Centre Iskandar Puteri will be part of the integrated Sunway City Iskandar Puteri township and will support the health and well-being of surrounding communities.

 

“Today’s groundbreaking marks an important step towards realising our vision for Sunway Medical Centre Iskandar Puteri. As the healthcare anchor of this integrated ecosystem, the hospital will enable us to bring our clinical expertise, integrated model of care and commitment to service excellence to communities across southern Malaysia as well as international patients from Indonesia and Singapore,” said Lau.

 

The VIPs wore gloves before holding their
'golden' shovels to symbolically break-the-ground

Sunway Group Founder and Chairman Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Sir Dr. Jeffrey Cheah KBE AO said Sunway has always believed in Johor’s immense potential and that quality healthcare is essential to sustaining the state’s growth.

 

“Businesses choose to invest where people can build secure and fulfilling lives, and families put their trust in places where quality medical care is within reach,” said Cheah.

 

“We look forward to building a trusted medical institution that serves Johor and the wider region for generations to come,” he added.

 

SMCIP will form part of Sunway City Iskandar Puteri, a vibrant 2,000-acre integrated and vibrant township that features education, hospitality, entertainment, retail, commercial and residential components.

 

Upon full completion, the township is expected to serve a community of more than 250,000 residents. Sunway City Iskandar Puteri is also one of Johor’s first townships to receive Green Building Index certification, with a Silver rating.

The symbolic Groundbreaking by the VIPs
using 'golden' shovels

Beyond SMCIP, SHG is also expanding its healthcare presence in Johor through the planned Sunway Fertility Centre at Sunway Citrine, targeted for completion in 2027, and the Sunway Ambulatory Care Centre near the Johor Bahru–Singapore RTS Link, targeted for completion in 2028. The Group is also exploring potential elder-care facilities.

 

The township’s next phase of growth includes the recently launched Sunway Puteri Hills, a dining and lifestyle destination overlooking the Straits of Johor, and the Jeffrey Cheah Circuit, a 4.5-kilometre private, members-only motorsport circuit.

 

Plans also include an educational institution and a leisure and hospitality component expected to feature a Banjaran retreat.

 

On hearing this plan for a five-star Banjaran Mangrove Retreat created next to the Pendas River, my thoughts flashed to my extraordinary experience at the five-star, award-winning Banjaran Hotsprings Retreat with a peek into Jeff’s Cellar in 2012.

 

Then it was time for the groundbreaking ceremony, a symbolic start-of-construction of the SMCIP, where the VIPs were invited to break-the-ground manually using fancy ‘golden’ long-handled shovels.

 

Traditional prancing lions danced to the beat
of the piling machine on the brown field beyond

Lined up in a row in front of a rectangular box of soil, set up in front of a wall of curtains, the VIPs were each given gloves to wear before holding a ‘golden’ shovel.

 

Photographers were poised with their cameras to capture the moment and at the end of the countdown, the seven VIPs lifted their shovels to dig into the soil while the backdrop wall of curtains was drawn open to reveal the sunlit brown field beyond.

 

On the horizon, piling equipment were already in place, ready to simultaneously start the piling work with loud thumps while six brightly adorned traditional Chinese dancing lions pranced to the beat and approached the VIPs at the edge of the tent.

 

When the SMCIP opens in Sunway City Iskandar Puteri, it will join the Sunway Group's network of healthcare facilities that include its flagship quaternary hospital, Sunway Medical Centre Sunway City; tertiary hospitals in Velocity, Penang, Damansara and Ipoh; ambulatory care services at Sunway Specialist Centre Damansara; and complementary services offered through Sunway TCM Centre, Sunway Fertility Centre and Sunway Home Healthcare.

 

Capturing a photo memento of the
Groundbreaking Ceremony

The groundbreaking ceremony ended after a photo session and the presentation of souvenir to the guest-of-honour, followed by refreshments aptly hosted at venues in nearby Sunway Puteri Hills and the Sunway Hotel Big Box.

 

Launched in 2014, Sunway City Iskandar Puteri began with over 2,000 acres of prime land and over the years, I had the pleasure to enjoy dining and shopping experiences in Sunway Citrine Hub, Sunway Big Box Retail Park, Sunway Hotel Big Box and Sunway Boulevard 88.

 

A decade on, the township has grown into a vibrant, self-sustaining community with over 30% developed and thousands calling it home. Together with this new hospital, these developments will further broaden the township’s residential, education, healthcare, hospitality and leisure destinations in Sunway City Iskandar Puteri.