KT teams with Medi Plus Solution for business in Vietnam

Yim Seung-hyouk, left, head of KT's digital and biohealth business unit, poses with Bae Yoon-jung, Medi Plus Solution CEO, during a signing ceremony held in Songpa District, southern Seoul, Wednesday. [KT]

KT signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Medi Plus Solution, local healthcare company, to enter the Vietnamese digital healthcare market.

The telecom plans to start a telemedicine service in Vietnam this year focusing on cancer and chronic diseases.

Medi Plus Solution will be taking part in the cancer patient management business, while chronic diseases-related services will be developed by KT and Huraypositive, a Gangnam, Seoul-based digital healthcare company. Huraypositive signed a deal with KT in May.

Founded in 2013, Medi Plus Solution is a digital healthcare company based in Seongbuk District, central Seoul, and runs Second Doctor, a personalized digital healthcare app for cancer patients. The company is 76.8 percent owned by Hyundai Future Partners, a wholly owned subsidiary of Hyundai Heavy Industries Holdings.

KT and Medi Plus Solution will develop a digital patient management service, run a test operation of the service in Vietnamese medical facilities and expand the telemedicine business for cancer patients in the country.

KT hopes to scale up its digital healthcare business in the Asian market starting with Vietnam.

The company signed a deal with Hanoi Medical University for remote healthcare in April. KT has also been working with Vietnam’s National Cancer Hospital to test a post-surgery care service for cancer patients since last year.

“There is a high demand for improvement in the medical and healthcare sectors in Vietnam, as the country lacks medical infrastructure,” said Song Jae-ho, head of the artificial intelligence and digital transformation business department at KT on Wednesday. “Starting with Vietnam, we will promote Korea’s capability in the digital healthcare business overseas and offer innovative customer experience.”

“Through cooperation with KT, we will perfect the contact-free patient management service model that has been operated only on a limited scale in Korea due to restrictions,” said Bae Yoon-jung, CEO of Medi Plus Solution.

BY SHIN HA-NEE [shin.hanee@joongang.co.kr]