A ‘healthy’ journey at the Malaysian Healthcare Wellness Fair

 Visitors collect stickers in 'health passports' as they explore screenings, medical specialities and Malaysia’s growing healthcare travel offerings.

MH Wellness Fair 2026, organised by MHTC, offered a lively look at Malaysia’s healthcare landscape.

SUBANG JAYA:

Armed with a “health passport”, visitors at the Malaysian Healthcare Wellness Fair 2026 embarked on a journey through Malaysia’s healthcare landscape one booth and one sticker at a time.

Held at Taylor’s University here, the fair transformed the familiar experience of collecting passport stamps into an interactive introduction to preventive healthcare, medical specialities and Malaysia’s healthcare travel offerings.

Participants moved seamlessly between booths set up by private healthcare providers such as Damansara Specialist Hospital, KL Fertility Centre, IMU Healthcare and Pantai Hospital.

Each stop offered something different, from information on reproductive, nutritional and oral health, to blood pressure and glucose checks.

After completing an activity or consultation, visitors received a sticker to place in their passports, much like travellers marking each destination they had visited.

Games, prizes and a lucky draw added to the lively atmosphere, with one winner taking home an exclusive MHTC x Siti Nurhaliza signed postcard.

Beyond the activities, 30-minute sharing sessions gave participants the chance to hear directly from healthcare professionals, learn about different medical specialities and ask questions.

A playful face for healthcare travel

Adding to the lively atmosphere were Dr Wira and Sister Manja, the healthcare counterparts of Wira and Manja, the official sun bear mascots of the Visit Malaysia 2026 campaign.

Unveiled by the Malaysia Healthcare Travel Council (MHTC) earlier this week, they were reimagined as a doctor and nurse to represent the country’s healthcare travel sector, while maintaining their role as friendly ambassadors welcoming visitors to Malaysia.

The pair greeted participants and posed for photographs, bringing a playful touch to a serious subject often associated with clinics and treatment rooms.

Tourism Malaysia’s official mascots, Wira and Manja, add cheer to the event.

Organised by MHTC and developed in collaboration with Tourism Malaysia, the event extended the Visit Malaysia 2026 campaign into the country’s healthcare sector in support of the Malaysia Year of Medical Tourism 2026.

MHTC market director Suryani Mustapa said the fair aimed to make healthcare information more accessible, particularly to international students.

“We want to educate them on preventive medicine rather than curative medicine,” she told FMT Lifestyle.

Suryani said international students might not always know where to seek treatment or which healthcare providers they could rely on while living in Malaysia – one of the reasons the event was held at Taylor’s University, which has a large international student community.

“Sometimes when they are here, they are quite lost. They don’t know where to go or which hospital is reliable,” she said.

She added that medical travellers often arrived with family members or friends, allowing healthcare visits to form part of a wider travel experience extending to food, shopping and sightseeing.

Suryani said MHTC currently works with 91 private hospitals, all of which underwent quality checks before being accepted as members.

A growing healthcare and wellness destination

Former prime minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob, who made a surprise appearance at the fair, said Malaysia was well positioned to attract overseas patients because of the quality of its private hospitals and comparatively affordable treatment costs.

Former prime minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob was a surprise guest at the event.

“Last time, many Indonesians went to Singapore for treatment. But now they come to Malaysia because our currency is more favourable. This is the right time for us to promote medical tourism,” he said.

Singer and yoga instructor Atilia Haron, an ambassador for the Malaysian Healthcare Wellness Fair, said bringing conversations about wellness into universities could help youngsters become more conscious of their physical and mental health at an earlier age.

Atilia Haron with Tourism Malaysia’s official mascots, Wira and Manja, at Taylor’s University.

“When you are studying, you can face a lot of stress,” she said, recalling how yoga had taught her to slow down and become a calmer person.

Atilia said Malaysia also had the natural beauty, wellness practitioners and year-round weather needed to attract visitors seeking experiences such as yoga retreats.

For those moving through the fair with their health passports in hand, it was a message worth embracing whether they were tourists, international students or Malaysians: better health begins with awareness, prevention and taking the time to care for yourself. - FMT