Tanzania Welcomes Viva Serenity

About three months ago, all roads led to the Serena Hotel in Dar es Salaam for an event themed; Advanced Medical Treatment, which targeted doctors and medics in Tanzania. The 1^st of May 2021 was no ordinary day for Viva Serenity who officially marked their entry and introduced themselves to the Tanzanian market. The Dar 5-star hotel hosted over 100 doctors and medical practitioners from Dar and its environs. The medics were also joined virtually by over 30 doctors who attended via Zoom.

Medical Tourism

In line with the theme of the event; Advanced Medical treatment, the medical professionals discussed matters concerning Medical Tourism, a term that is used to refer to when one travels away from their city or country of origin for medical treatment. Medical tourism seeks to ensure that any treatment a patient requires is made available, physical distance notwithstanding, to and from the specific hospital.

Preparing for medical treatment abroad comes with additional responsibilities among them; passport processing, flight bookings, airport transfers, and finding the right treatment centers. The ideal treatment centers could be available either locally or abroad and hence the three forms of Medical Tourism: Local Medical Tourism, Inbound Medical Tourism, and Outbound Medical Tourism, which Viva Serenity has been facilitating for over seven years in Kenya.

One of the main objectives of the event was for Viva Serenity to provide easily accessible solutions for doctors in Tanzania and their patients.

Dr. Asha Mahita

The event was also graced by various partners and influential medical professionals within Tanzania. Dr. Asha Mahita, a renowned doctor in Tanzania attended the event as a guest speaker, reiterating the importance of working together for the development and growth of the medical industry within Africa. She is currently the Head of Referral Service (Abroad) at the Ministry of Health, Community Development, Elderly, and Children. Dr. Mahita who has a wealth of experience has previously worked as a Regional Medical Officer in Tanga Region, a District Medical Officer at Ilala Municipal Council, a Hospital Director at Temeke Regional Hospital, and as a Clinical Service Coordinator at Mwananyamala Hospital. She shared her professional views on advanced medical treatment abroad, which was timely given her recent history as Head of Referral Service.

Global partners

In addition, Viva Serenity also had some of its partners from around the world join in via Zoom to speak on their experience with Viva. Dr. Mwiyeria Ngare, a Board Certified Family Medicine Physician based in Houston, Texas, spoke about the health industry and development in the US and was excited to be part of medical tourism providers. Dr. Anthony Umezurike, an MBBS, MPH Assistant Director and Head of the Health Section and Social Services at Niger Delta Development Commission in River State Nigeria also spoke about the resources we can tap into from each other within Africa, let alone other continents. Dr. Louise from Burundi was keen on Outbound Medical tourism noting that it is unfortunate to witness ailing patients in Burundi who lack certain treatments that are readily available within the African borders.

Bariatric surgery testimonials

Viva Serenity has a lot of history and expertise in weight loss management with treatments such as bariatric surgery and the audience got to hear testimonials from two Viva brand ambassadors, who like many others have undergone this surgery thanks to Viva’s facilitation.  Their personal stories and weight loss journeys brought a sense of comradery and empathy to the listening audience of media and medics. Another brand ambassador that has worked with Viva Serenity is Wema Sepetu; a renowned media personality in Tanzania who underwent bariatric surgery in 2018. A snippet of her journey and brand ambassadorship with Viva was showcased at the event and was an eye-opener to many who didn’t know about her weight loss journey. Wema’s successful journey is Viva Serenity’s pride and joy along with the success of many other patients who have undergone different procedures like; orthopedic surgeries, organ transplant surgeries, IVF’s to mention but a few.