The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) 6 (Western Visayas) gathered stakeholders for a two-day Healthcare Information Management System (HIMS) conference starting yesterday, as the region continues to cement its position as the preferred destination for locators of healthcare technology services.
DTI-6 Director Rachel Nufable said the HIMS industry presents high-value job opportunities and could boost local healthcare systems while accelerating regional economic growth.
“We believe that this industry, a big job generator, will bring the region to greater heights, transform our local healthcare system, and revitalize and accelerate economic growth. This gathering represents thousands of potential high-value jobs for our people,” Nufable said in her message during the opening program.
“It represents international companies looking at Western Visayas not just as another location but as a preferred destination for healthcare technology services.”
The goal, she said, is to transform the region into a hub for health and life sciences and, ultimately, the HIMS capital of the world.
Assistant Secretary Leonila Baluyut said the HIMS sector is becoming a “cornerstone of the modern economy” as it enhances patient care, promotes efficient operations, and opens new frontiers in data-driven decision-making by integrating healthcare with cutting-edge information technology.
“Western Visayas, particularly Iloilo City, stands at the forefront of this transformation. The region’s competitive advantage is rooted in its strong educational infrastructure, a large base of healthcare and IT graduates and eco-system that supports knowledge industries,” she said.
Citing data from the Iloilo Federation for Information Technology, she said that Iloilo City has more than 122 IT-BPM firms, many of which are into healthcare-related services, employing 47,000 direct workers and contributing to about 188,000 indirect jobs.
Healthcare Information Management Association of the Philippines (HIMAP) Vice President JL Botor said the region is already on the path to becoming a global leader in the sector.
He cited HIMAP’s 2028 target of 285,000 full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs and US$6.7 billion in revenue, up from 190,000 jobs and US$4.2 billion this year.
“You are on the right track. You are not off. We believe that there could still be growth even without our intervention, but with the interventions of both the government and the private sector, we can double it, we can triple it. And we can point the direction of Western Visayas to some of the investors to come to us,” he said in a press conference.
“There is an opportunity for growing HIMS.”
To meet that demand, a deeper review of local capacity and goals is needed, Nufable said, noting an original target of 20 to 30 major healthcare-focused BPOs. Currently, efforts are focused on advocacy and career-path promotion.
One of the highlights of the conference was the signing of a memorandum of understanding on the development and promotion of the HIMS sector with the Department of Education 6 (Western Visayas), Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, National Information and Communications Technology Confederation of the Philippines, and HIMAP to chart courses and programs aligned with the needs of the industry. (PNA)