Aster to set up excellence hub on Cayman Islands

The agreement will see the UAE-based Aster initially develop around 150-bed comprehensive, tertiary and quaternary care hospital, with an opportunity to expand in the future based on need, alongside an assisted living facility and healthcare university in the long-term, said Dr Azad Moopen, founder chairman and managing director of Aster DM Healthcare.

The hub seeks to serve the Caribbean Region, North America, Canada, Latin and South America.

“With this project, Aster aims to replicate its “Medcity” concept which has proven to be highly successful as its flagship facility in Kochi, India. The team leading the project hopes to break ground by mid-2021, with the commencement of the Aster Cayman Medcity - phase 1 construction,” Dr Moopen said.

“With our experience of delivering healthcare over three decades in India and the Middle East, Aster is in the process expanding to other regions,” Dr Moopen said.

Alden McLaughlin, premier for the Cayman Islands, said Aster’s willingness to invest several hundred millions of dollars in the Cayman Islands economy, in spite of the economic downturn caused by Covid-19, speaks volumes not only of their confidence in the Cayman Islands but also of the resiliency of Cayman’s economy and its people. “Aster Cayman Medcity, together with the other healthcare tourism providers on Island, will further put the Cayman Islands in place to become a major regional healthcare hub.”

“The Caribbean region is a developing market with tremendous potential which is yet to be fully tapped. While the Cayman Islands is best suited in terms location, government support and healthcare spends, the region is looking for right-cost, best quality alternatives to the exorbitant costs that locals have to pay for seeking quaternary care abroad. With Aster’s success story of serving advanced quality and affordable care in all the countries that we have a presence in, we believe that we have a unique positioning which would support the economic growth of Cayman Islands,” said Alisha Moopen, deputy managing director of Aster DM Healthcare.